The days are longer and the weather is warmer, which means it is road-trip time! It is the time for heading out to visit family and/or go on vacation; which, of course, can mean long periods in the car. And, when you have small children, traveling in the car for those long periods can be quite the challenge. Here are five strategies you can use to keep the "are we there yet" cries at bay:
1. Make it educational. Before leaving for a trip, do a little geography lesson with your children. Talk about the place or places you will be going to visit and show them the route you will be going to take. Let them keep a map on their lap (if you have one) and as you are driving they can pretend to give you directions and point out the places or landmarks you talked about before the trip.
You can also use the traveling time for practicing their reading and/or math skills. Spend some time reading to your children or have them read to you from quality, entertaining books. Also, have your children practice the math concepts they learned or may have struggled with during the previous school year.
2. Make it fun. Whenever you go on a trip, make up a child's travel bag. Put in a few of each child's favorite toys and a few special toys that are set aside just for trips. The bag should be kept within reach of each child's seat so he or she can have access to his or her things at all times.
Also, you can play traveling games like "I Spy", finding certain colored cars or license plates and other games. Or, you can let your children take turns making up their own games to play.
3. Make it quiet. It is good to keep children occupied during trips, but don't feel like you have to keep them entertained the whole time either. Designate certain periods for quiet time.
If you have a regular nap or quiet time instituted at home, enforcing a quiet time in the car shouldn't be too difficult; however, If you do not do regular quiet times (and I highly recommend that you do), you can still encourage your children to read quietly or close their eyes for a while.
4. Make it conversational. Take some time during your journey to chat with your children. You may be astonished at what you will discover about your children, even young ones!
What should you talk about? Talk about what you are going to do during your visit or vacation. Ask open-ended questions. Talk about books you have read or movies you have watched together. Just spend time listening to your children. Get to know who they are and what they like. Even better, let your child or children control the direction of the conversation.
5. Make regular stops. Sure we all want to get to our destination as quickly possible. However, if you integrate rest stops as part of your journey, it will give the kids a chance to expend some energy, stretch and help make the trip feel less of a drudgery. And by the way, stopping to stretch isn't just good for the children, it is good for you as well.
Simple idea: Why not plan a picnic at a rest stop or nearby park or tourist destination along the way? If you bring your own meals you will save money by not paying ridiculously high prices at the rest stop and it's a lot healthier, too.
With a little thought and creativity, a long trip can actually be a lot fun for the whole family!
Carol A. D'Annunzio lives a simple, (fairly!) quiet life as a child of God, wife, homeschooling mother, homemaker and entrepreneur. She is passionate about encouraging and supporting others as they live out their own vocations as Catholic women through her blog and Facebook Page.
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