A long car ride is a great opportunity to play favourite games in the car to pass the time and help with literacy and numeracy skills.

Tell a story

Play a storytelling game. The first person starts with the line, ‘My rocket ship was heading to Mars’, and continues making up a few lines of what happens next. Then the next person takes over and continues on the story. Be creative, you can choose other lead-in sentences like, ‘When my hair went blue’, ‘Harry the dinosaur liked to eat worm sock sandwiches and …’ and ‘Once upon a time there was a little boy who grew great big wings’. Warning, this game can make for nonsensical tales that can result in fits of giggles!

Ten trucks

How quickly can you see and count 10 trucks?

Signs that have …

This one is great for children learning phonics and numbers. Everyone looks out for a sign with a certain letter or number.

First person to see …

Give your children objects to look out for during the car trip, such as an orange car, a white fence or a horse.

Rainbow song

Sing, ‘Red and yellow and pink and green, purple and orange and blue’. Find the colours in the song. This teaches your child colours and observation skills.