Fun Reading Games for Road Trips

Going on a holiday is always great fun, but getting there is another story altogether. Being stuck in a vehicle for many long hours is enough to get anyone cranky, and it’s even worse when there are restless kids on board. How does one keep everybody happily engaged and enjoying the time together? Many parents talk of using the opportunity to play fun travel games and have interesting conversations as a family. Some of the favorite travel games, like Road Sign Bingo, are just pure fun while others like Odd or Even have an educational element to it. Here are five fun reading games that you can play on your next road trip to have a blast with the family.

By Florida Memory [No restrictions], via Wikimedia Commons

1. Category ABCs – Category ABCs is a fun travel game that is suitable for all ages, and provides phonics practice for young kids. To begin, players agree on a category, like animals, places or food. Then, the first player calls out an item from that category that begins with the letter ‘A’. The second player continues by repeating that item, and adding an item from the same category that begins with the letter ‘B’. Each player repeats the list of items called out so far and adds one more item starting with the next letter of the alphabet. Players who mess up the order or forget items are out of the game. This reading game is also great for improving memory.

2. Billboard Alphabet Hunt– The object of this travel game is to find the letters of the alphabet in order on the billboards or signboards that you pass. Sounds easy? Not so quick. Each board can only be used for a single letter. The game can be played in several ways to adjust the difficulty level. Everyone can play together, working on finishing the alphabets once, or you can play as individuals to see who can get through the entire alphabet the quickest. This reading game is great for kids who are practicing letter recognition.

3. Roadside Alphabets – A variation of ‘Billboard Alphabet Hunt’, ‘Roadside Alphabet’ is about finding objects that begin with the different letters of the alphabet. Starting with the letter ‘A’, players try to find objects that begin with the different letters of the alphabet, in order. This reading game can be played as a group or as individuals racing to see who can get through the entire alphabet the quickest. The game helps with practicing letter sounds.

4. License Plate Words –This is a great reading game for older kids, and helps practice spellings. One person in the car calls out the letters from passing license plates, and the others take turns thinking of words that contain those letters in the same order. For example, the caller might say ‘CSN’ and the player can respond with the word ‘cushion’ or ‘cruising’.

5. Backwords – This reading game may sound like spelling practice, but it’s a lot of fun! One person in the car calls out words and the others take turns spelling the words backward. It’s a lot more difficult than it sounds, and gets everyone racking their brains sounding out words and revising their spellings.

These travel games may not sound like reading games at first, but they get players practicing letter recognition, phonics and spellings all of which are crucial to reading fluency. They’re also a lot of fun, and are pretty effective in keeping young travelers thinking about something other than how much longer it’s going to take to get to their destination.

Reposted from http://funkidsgames.beep.com

Forget Online Games, Play Some Real World Games

Summers are a good time for kids to put away their devices and homework. Kids need to switch off from online games and explore non digital activities. After all human beings are a part of nature and it’s important to stay plugged into a system that we are part of. Being in touch with nature regulates well-being, keeps the senses sharp and gives kids a sense of cyclical continuity. 

By Bev Sykes from Davis, CA, USA (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Many of the modern day lifestyle problems that kids have developed can easily be sorted out with a massive dose of Vit-N. Here are 5 summer activities for you to explore:

    

     1. Get the kids to explore the geography around where they live. Take the kids out to parks and open spaces close to home. Let them feel the soil and grass under their feet. Open up a map and talk about the contiguity of land. Spot rivers and other water bodies close by. Wade through the water and throw pebbles in. Talk of the source of drinking water.

     

      2. Spot our fellow creature in the world. If you live in an urban jungle watch out for birds which have found new nesting places. Help kids understand the importance of our little insect friends. Teach them to observe plants and insects. Spot the caterpillars, butterflies, wasps, bee hives or the many other signs of nature in our concrete hubs. In case you need to learn more to get your kids interested, many universities put out a lot of information about our fellow creatures on their departmental sites. There are a lot of dedicated scientists/commoners who love sharing their information on virtual and real world spaces. 

3    

      3.  Get kids to photograph the same things through various parts of the day. When they see the same scene/thing photographed under various conditions of light, they understand the impact of the Sun, and how we fit into the astronomical world.

         

      4 . Try Hapa Zome, a craft activity. Get the kids to collect leaves and flowers in various colors and shapes. Lay them out on a piece of clean white cotton cloth with no starch. Spread a piece of tissue on the plant matter and hammer gently on it. This will help release the pigments onto the cloth. Peel the plant matter off to see the prettiest of designs. Kids can hang their piece of art on the wall or on the refrigerator at home.          

     

     5. Run a scavenger hunt in a park. This can be an intensely fun activity in a small neighborhood park. Make lists of things to be found. Distribute it among the groups. Help the kids find them. This will help them explore the park in ways you had never imagined. Give clues which will make them look for things from different perspectives. E.g. Spotting an owl home or a type of ant nest in the ground. 

      Well, enjoy the summer before the cold sets in. It's a great time for kids to also adopt some eco-friendly practices. Rejuvenate and bond with your kids. Go on and have a good time. 

3 Unusual Mother's Day Gifts

The National Retail Federation says the expenditure on Mother's Day celebrations could touch USD 21.4 billion! That's a lot of money and when combined with facts about Mother's Day, it would astound quite a few. In fact Anna Jarvis the founder was actually lobbying for a stopping the celebration as it had ended up as a commercial celebration rather than a sentimental one. 

By Sam Pullara (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Mothers appreciate the simpler things in life and really enjoy those gifts which have some personal effort going into it. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. Bed in breakfast
2. Lots of sleep
3. Boring chores all taken care off

Most mothers would love these especially the second one if there are younger kids involved. Here are 3 unusual mother's day gifts:

1. Get a gift subscription:
After reading this article it seems to be a great idea to buy a subscription for a virtual pet game, as a mother's day gift. Easy to buy, a game that can be enjoyed at leisure by both mother and child, simple to play and most importantly a gift subscription that can be enjoyed long after Mother's Day celebrations are over. 

2. Buy a set of pots with organic vegetables
Caring for plants which are already grown is fairly simple and something a busy mother can do. Alternatively you could get her a desert terrarium which actually requires minimal care. Beautiful to look, alive and something that will last a long time. 

3. Doing an activity together
Mothers like spending time with their kids when they are not in charge. Then they can enjoy them without the responsibility of caring for their needs which can get tiring on an everyday basis. When kids are young mothers like to spend time by themselves. That's a treat, but as they grow older they enjoy spending time with the kids! So kids can pick an activity which their mother might enjoy with them. 

On a simpler scale kids could surprise their mum with breakfast in bed and more importantly with a cleaned up room - without her asking them to! Now that would definitely be a memorable Mother's Day gift!

Happy Mother's Day. 

4 Good Online Resources for Art

Keeping kids interested in science is important, but the exposure to art is also very important. Parents need to use science worksheets to help kids keep pace in school, but they also need to encourage the kids to enjoy art. It's a modern construct to divide subjects. Leonardo da Vinci was a man of both science and art. When many scientists speak, they speak of beauty, balance, harmony and other such things which are are also found in nature and art.

24.FriendshipMural.TidalBasin.SW.WDC.14April2013 by Elvert Barnes

Kids need to have an exposure to art. They must enjoy random doodling, coloring, drawing with sticks, drawing in air, seeing shapes in clouds etc. Nature is full of science and art. The beauty of flowers lies in its petals which might follow the Fibonacci sequence. The tall tree will have the most ingenious way of pumping water from the ground to the topmost leaf in the tree. Even on a hill, trees can stand upright with the help of their roots holding together. It's for us to understand the science behind the beauty of tall trees reaching up to the sky or holding roots together for stability.

The science behind a lot of these things have been understood by people who have had well rounded childhoods with art, science and math playing their parts out. Learning to marvel at the simple things builds an innate sense of wonder in kids. Art plays a crucial role in freeing up the mind and allowing it to see beyond the obvious.

Here are 4 good online resources for art:

1. Red Ted Art

2. The Artful Parent

3. Babble Dabble Do

4. What We Do All Day

Three of these blogs have activities for both science and art. These blogs are for parents of younger kids and has loads of resources for parents who might be short of time. Take your time to go through and pick appropriate activities for your kids.

Art with younger kids is also about enjoying the process. The end result might not be much to others, but the exposure and process helps kids. Art can also be calming. It could also be a way for kids to express their inner self. It may be many things, but at it's simplest it's also good bonding time between kids and parents. Have fun!

Keeping Kids Interested in Science

S.T.E.M has become S.T.E.A.M in many places. Yes, parents, teachers, administrators and educators are all talking about these things. There's a big push on getting kids interested in Science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Art is the newest entrant to this acronym. At the younger ages where the streams are not differentiated, many kids like science. As the kids grow, their interest in science wanes. The reasons are many. One of the biggest reasons is that it stops being fun. As simple as that. A good teacher who's deeply involved in teaching can keep the kids interested in science.

Do you Play? by Fabrizio Sciami

Three things that can be done to keep kids interested in science:

1. Teachers must innovate

With changing technology, teachers have started using it to keep the kids hooked on science. Many teachers who are interested in learning new thing have actually learnt to gamify parts of the curriculum. They get the kids to play the games and develop an interest in what is being taught. Other teachers use educational science games in the classroom. As many teachers make their own worksheets, a new space where teachers can pay teachers to use their worksheets has been created. Some teachers take the kids out of the classroom to the real world for observation. They get the kids involved in noting down their observations and exchanging information with others to understand the larger picture. 

2. Parents must be kept involved

There was a time when the work of schools and parents was completely separated. Nowadays schools make sure parents are fully involved. Results are sent automatically to parents. They come into school for discussions about a child's progress and the collective goal is to get the kids interested in learning. In fact many schools have started libraries on school premises where parents and kids can spend time together reading available books. Most importantly teachers need to be aware of the home environment kids go back to. If there are problems which teachers or the school can help with, in a child's best interest the school needs to step forward and help to the best of their availability. Parenting in the digital age might be hard for many parents, but all that they must do is remember that even in the digital age, the real world matters.

3. Take the Kids Out into the Real World

Kids need to spend time in the real world out in nature. They need to feel the grass under their feet and the sun on their faces. We are a part of nature and we should learn more about the world around us. Every bodily sense is challenged out in nature. It helps kids develop better and with fewer sensory problems. When they handle flowers with their bare hands, it's easier for them to understand natural dyes. When they swim in water, they can understand liquids better. When they see things fly in the wind, they understand how things have to be lighter than the wind to be carried away. Things learnt naturally are better understood by kids. Every chance there is, kids must be taken out into the Great Outdoors.

Keeping kids interested in science is easy if certain things are kept in mind. Always remember kids are natural learners and their curiosity helps them learn more. 

3 Games for Halloween Parties

As Fall sweeps in, kids and parents get an opportunity to enjoy some Fall activities. Now, Halloween's around the corner, and that means it's time to pull out the mothball covered costumes from the cupboard! Air them and try them on. Kids have a tendency to shoot up; make sure the costume fits them well. Not too short, not too long, not too loose and not too tight, or you won't hear the end of it!

Halloween by Srdjan Jovanovich

It's good to plan for some Halloween games. You could pull out Halloween games from the Net, or get inventive if you have the time. People enjoy them and it's a good way to get people to gel together. Make sure groups have a good mix of kids and adults. Organize for some Halloween finger food and spooky drinks for kids. You are all set for the party now. To add some fun, here are three games you could try:

1. Halloween Telephone

The good thing about this games is that it requires zero preparation. Everyone sits around in a circle. The first person whispers something Halloween related into the neighbor's ear. Then the whisper is passed on. It's great fun to see what the last person has heard and compare it to what the first person said. If little kids are there, the urgency to pass on the message can morph it into something totally different. 

2. Pumpkin Jigsaw

This requires some preparation. Trace out a large pumpkin on thick card stock. Trace out jigsaw pieces and cut it out carefully. Make sure pieces are distinctly different. Get the teams to assemble the pumpkin and time them to decide who's the fastest.

3. Pull Out Pairs

Using slightly thick card stock, get the kids to trace out shapes related to Halloween like pumpkin, conical hat, a cape etc. They should be smaller than your palm, and need to be in pairs. Now drop them all into a box. Blindfold the guests and ask them to feel around in the box and pull out items in pairs. If you have prepared just one box, then teams take turns to pull out the pairs. Time the teams and the one which finishes fastest is the winner. 

Well get everything ready, and you are all set for a great Halloween party. Have a great time!

Let the kids play with their food

Parents always caution their kids to not play with their food, and here we seem to be doing the exact opposite. Well, please be reassured that kids are not being encouraged to throw food around. This is actually aimed at getting kids to explore the food they eat.

Pizza Apprentice by rootseven

Why is it important to know food

There's an old joke about a child being asked if he knew where the milk he was drinking came from. The child nodded vigorously and said it came out of a box!

Well, if there is such a disconnect it does not bode well for the kids, or their parents and caretakers. Kids need to know where their food comes from so that their place in nature's life-cycle is understood by them.  Kids need to understand the interconnectedness of life, the dependence and the beauty of how things fit in real life. This helps kids stay rooted to the reality of life. Without food we die. If we know how our food reaches out plates, we at least arm kids with enough knowledge to go looking for more information. The bond between humans and food is ancient and changing. Hunting might have been one of the earliest professions, but then agriculture became a dominant profession which over time became something in which the entire family was involved. Historically, food has been the platform from which many other professions have spun out of.

Playing Games
Kids learn very well when they learn via play. Here are three important traits kids develop with play. There's a reason why parents encourage kids educational games in this digital world that we live in. When games are leveled, they actually play the same game and up the levels gradually. If we can get kids to play with the same enthusiasm in the real world, they can actually touch and feel as they learn.

Here are a three games kids can play:

1. Blow them away
Halloween's around the corner. Involve the kids in picking and carrying home a pumpkin. Once it's cut, get the kids to scoop out the seeds and dry it. Make sure no stringy stuff is attached. When you have a nicely dried pile which can fill an adult's cupped palms, all's ready for the game.

Get the kids to sit around a smooth surface, say a table top. Clear up the space. Pile up the seeds in the center. A kid blows on it and picks up seeds until they disturb a neighboring seed, which is when the next player gets a turn to do the same. The winner is one who can collect the biggest pile as the central pile disappears.

Not only does this improve the child's motor skills, it also helps the kids understand how plants grow their seeds, where they keep them and how they disperse. The more parents and caretakers talk about the vegetable/fruit they are dealing with, the more the kid absorbs. E.g., In this game kids can actually understand how drying seeds make them lighter and how blowing on them can disperse the seeds.

2. String them up
Pile up a bunch of beans in the center of a table. Divide the pile between the players. Teach everyone how to string beans. Get the kids to string it from one end only. Make sure it stays attached. Hold up the string and see how a flimsy fiber can hold up the entire bean. The game is string them at one end. Then gently use the fiber of one to tie it to the other. Keep doing this and holding it up. Whoever has the maximum number of beans on the first strung bean, is the winner. If there's a tie, the players add more beans and the winner is one who has the most hanging together.

This helps kids understand how strong fiber can be. While playing this game, the players can discuss the varieties of beans, how seeds grow inside and even about the varieties where the seeds can be eaten, but the seed pod has to be discarded.

3. Pile Them High
How high can you pile okra? Keep adding to the stack to make a high pile. Alternatively divide the okra and ask the players to pile them up. By playing with okra, kids can explore their interesting structure and texture.

As you play with the kids, they themselves come up with ideas to explore other fruits and vegetables. It's great fun to explore the well packed pomegranate, the beautiful colors of the citrus fruits, the color of the beets and the long shelf life of the potatoes. While these games are played, a lot is learnt by kids which we do not actually teach; like the smells, the oxidation, the slime etc.  Go on, let the kids play with their food.