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Reversal Word Game

Reversal Word Game...

Reversal (or Reverse-It) is a fun little word game that you can change and adapt with every different game. Instructions: You need at least two players for this game. You will play two rounds. ROUND 1: You will choose a topic for this round. It could be names of people you know, names of places, names of famous people, names of foods, etc. The object of Round 1 is to find a correct word or two words (eg. For names:...
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Password Game

Password Game...

The object of this game is to get other people in the car to correctly guess a word that you are thinking of by giving them clues that suggest the word. Choose one person in the vehicle to start off as the clue giver. That person selects their word and starts to give clues (a one-word clue that somehow relates to the “password”) out to the people in the car. The clue-giver provides one clue at a time. After...
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Tic Tac Toe

Tic Tac Toe...

What would a long road trip be without at least one game of Tic-Tac-Toe. Here are the basic game play rules: 1) Draw the board to look like a # character. It needs to be big enough to write X and O letters in the spaces between each line. 2) Choose which player will be represented by X and which by O 3) Player X goes first. He or she may put an X in any of the nine sections of the grid. 4) Player O follows after X and...
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Jotto – Word Game

Jotto – Word Game...

If any of you have played the board game by the name of “Mastermind”, then you will catch on to this verbal word game very quickly. All you need for this game is some paper and a pencil. The game is designed around two players, but you could modify it a bit for more players if desired. The object of the game is to guess your opponent’s secret word through a series of word guesses and logic. To begin, each...
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I Claim It!

I Claim It!...

This is a fun game that can involve everyone in the car. Before the game begins, everyone agrees on a list of animals or other sites that are likely to be seen often on the stretch of road you are traveling. You all then agree on the number of points each animal (or object) that is sighted will be worth. You then determine how long the game will run. Everyone watches out for the items. Each time a person sees one of the...
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License Plate 21

License Plate 21...

Each person in the car looks for a license plate on a vehicle where the digits on that plate add up to, or exceed 21. For example, a license plate of ABC89L5 would total 22. You can either play that the person who exceeds 21 and has the highest total wins the round, or you could stick to the game of exceeding 21 and being the closest to 21. Keep a running total to see who wins in the end. We will often choose a winner...
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License Plate Counting

License Plate Counting...

Believe it or not there are a lot of fun activities that can be done with license plates and street signs. The best thing about these games are that they require very little or even no props or materials. One such game is what we like to call counting plates. All that is required are vehicle license plates in the very low elementary level knowledge of numbers. The object of the game to count to a predetermined number by...
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G-H-O-S-T

G-H-O-S-T...

Don’t let the title scare you. There is actually very little in this game that should cause a fright. Actually, I am not sure where it got the name, but it has stuck among those game players that like to trick each other with words. This game can be played with two or more players in the car. You really don’t need any other instruments to play this game other than possibly a piece of paper to keep track of the...
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What If?

What If?...

This is a fun get-to-know-you-better activity that the whole family can play during a road trip. There are no supplies necessary for this activity. All you have to do is come up with some creative questions for the trip. This does not have to happen before the road trip, but can take place during the trip, or even during the activity. Amazon.com Widgets Simply come up with a “What if” scenario and have...
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Fictionary

Fictionary...

This is a fun game that, although it requires some equipment, can keep the whole car entertained for quite some time. The object of the game is to write down definitions of unknown or complicated words that will trick the other players in the vehicle. You, as a player, will try to figure out what the correct definitions are to each word. You need at least three participants for this game. It is also very helpful to have a...
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Botticelli

Botticelli...

Botticelli is a fun game to play in the car – involving everyone who is old enough to think logically. Botticelli is sort of like a twenty questions game with the object of the game being to identify a person that people in the car or group should know. To being with, one person is chosen as “The Thinker” or “The Chooser” (whichever term you like). The Thinker will then silently choose a...
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Paper Battleship Game

Paper Battleship Game...

Most of us remember Battleship as a game that was played with two plastic boards that let you plug in ships and pegs for game play. The first versions of Battleship, however, started out as a paper and pencil game. Some names given to the game include Salvo or Broadsides. It was 1967 when Milton Bradley issued their version of the game of Battleship. Rather than relying on pencil and paper, the box included two plastic...
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In This – But not In That

In This – But not In That...

This is a fun game that works well with older children rather than younger ones. One person chooses a general categorization rule that can lump different words or things into an either/or situation. The person then names two things or words – one that “goes in” and another that does not. The other people in the car try to guess the rule. Example: Rule: Words with double vowels (“oo”,...
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The Alphabet Game

The Alphabet Game...

The object of the game is to get as far as you can down the alphabet naming items that belong to a particular category. For example, someone chooses a topic such as Places, Food, Names, Cars, Instruments, Stores, Sports, Stars, Sports Stars, or Family Members. The group goes around in circle. The first person names an item within the topic that starts with the letter “A”. The next person has to then come up with...
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Street Sign Scavanger Hunt

Street Sign Scavanger Hunt...

With this game you give all the occupants in the car a sheet of street signs. During a segment of the road trip they have to keep their eyes peeled for these signs. The first person to see a sign that they need on the list “claims” the sign so that no one else can use that particular sign for their list (however, if they find the same sign later on down the road, they can use that one). The object of the game is...
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Bingo Games

Bingo Games...

Partial Screenshot of a Traffic Sign Bingo Card Bingo is a fun game for nearly all ages. Our bingo cards are dynamically generated – allowing you to print out a different card every time. Feel free to print bingo cards and laminate them for future use if you care to. How to Play Each person in the car is given a different bingo card. During the road trip, as the players spot items similar to what is on the card (eg....
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Two Truths and a Lie

Two Truths and a Lie...

One person in the vehicle tells the group three statements about himself or herself. Of the three statements, two are true and one is a lie. Everyone tries to guess which one is the lie. One fun adaptation of this game is to give everyone some skittles, M&M’s, or other small candy. For every person that guesses their lie, they have to give one of their candies to each of the individuals. NOTE: This does not work...
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Twenty Questions

Twenty Questions...

A player thinks of an object, person, or place. The player can also declare it as an animal, vegetable, or mineral. Then people in the vehicle then start asking questions trying to narrow down the possibilities of what the person is thinking of. Questions must be able to be answered in “yes” or “no” format. It is best to ask general questions at first that narrow down the possible solutions before you...
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Rock, Paper, Scissors

Rock, Paper, Scissors...

Two players both count aloud to three, or speak the name of the game (e.g. “Rock! Paper! Scissors!”), each time raising one hand in a fist and swinging it down on the palm for every count. On the third count, the players change their hands into one of three hand formations: Rock, represented by a closed fist. Paper, represented by an open hand. Scissors, represented by the index and middle fingers extended. The...
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First and Last – Geography

First and Last – Geography...

Start with the name of a place (eg. Maryland). The next person has to think of a place that begins with the last letter of “Maryland”. Continue this pattern over and over again until someone cannot think of a response. Once a person misses a response, they are out. The next person has to inherit the letter that took the prior person out of the game. Continue in this manner until there is only one person...
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Word Building

Word Building...

Everyone works together to build a word one letter at a time. Each successive player adds a letter and must have a real word in mind. When a person cannot come up with a letter they are out and the next person has a chance. The person that finishes the word and is the only one in the game...
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Alphabet Memory

Alphabet Memory...

Start from the beginning of the alphabet. The first person will pick a letter and find a word or object starting with that letter. The next person must first say the previous letters and their corresponding word and then add the next letter and word. Move as far as you can through the alphabet. For example, Adam and Suzie are playing… {Adam}A is for apple. {Suzie}A is for apple; B is for bike. {Adam}A is for apple; B...
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I Spy

I Spy...

Pick someone in the vehicle to start the game out. They silently pick something that they see either in the vehicle or within the immediate surroundings. Once they have the object, they say, “I spy something with my little eye that…,” they then give a hint to everyone such as “…is red”, or “…is plastic”, or “…starts with the letter B.” Everyone in the...
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Which Funny Town Name is Real?

Which Funny Town Name is Real?...

The following game uses a mix of real life city names that are funny, odd, or outright strange. The object of the game is to make up two or three funny city names and then include them with one real city name. Have the people in the car try to guess which name is actually the name of a real city. We have a printable sheet of funny names that we found mostly in the United States. As a starting point, try your home state?...
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Odds & Evens

Odds & Evens...

One person is designated the “odds” player while the other is labeled “evens”. Players hold one hand out in front of them and count together to three (sometimes chanting “Once, twice, thrice, SHOOT!” or “One, two, three, SHOOT!”). On three (or “shoot”), both players hold out either one or two fingers. If the sum of fingers shown by both players is an even number...
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License Plate Phrases

License Plate Phrases...

This game involves the letters that appear on the license plates of passing cars. One person in the car starts out. The first license plate that they see that contains more than one letter on the plate must then come up with a phrase or possible acronym for those letters (in the order that they appear on the plate). As people fail to come up with a convincing phrase falls out of play. The last person in play wins the game....
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Alpha Signs

Alpha Signs...

The object of the game is to find a word on a street sign or on another vehicle that starts with the letter that you are currently on. The end goal is to get through the whole alphabet in alphabetical order. Everyone in the car starts at the letter “A”. As people see signs with the word that begins with “A” they move on to the next letter, “B” in this case. Only one person can claim a word...
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Buzz

Buzz...

This game is really meant for older kids that can do division in their heads. Go around in the car in order of age. The youngest person starts with the number 1. The next person must say the next number. Every time you get to a number that’s divisible by seven (7, 14, 21) or has a seven in it (17), say “Buzz” instead of the number. When you get the the oldest, start back with the youngest and continue the...
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Name that Tune

Name that Tune...

One person in the car hums or otherwise makes the sounds of a song. People in the vehicle take turns trying to guess the name of the song. Some favorite songs often come from television show theme songs, children’s songs, and church hymns/songs....
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