I’m on the road again.
I just can’t wait to get on the road again. I’ll make lots of new friends,
And I can’t wait to get on the road again…
I’m busy packing for the conference in Las Vegas, but I had to take a break and write this blog. Having children match road signs is a practical way to focus on environmental print as well as the standard “making real life connections between words and their use.” I found these great signs at doodlesandjots.com. If you run off two copies you can cut one up and then let the children use the pieces to match visually like a lotto game. You could also glue these to toilet paper rolls for signs in the block center.
I know some of you will be taking road trips with your own kids over the next few weeks, so download the signs and see how many your children can find along the road. (“Be alert for bears” might be a toughie!)
One year K.J. went on a four-hour car trip with us. I told him ahead of time we were going to play “old fashion family trip” and there would be no radio, CDs, or electronic devices. We would just talk, play games, and sing songs like we used to do in the “olden days.” We didn’t last four hours, but we did have some good laughs playing these car games:
License Plates – Can you find a license plate for every state? Write them down as you find them.
Alphabet – Can you find a word on a billboard that begins with each letter of the alphabet?
I Spy – Colors, shape, beginning sound…inside or outside the car.
20 Questions – People take turns thinking of a person, place, or thing. Other players can ask 20 “yes” - “no” questions to try and determine the answer.
Ghost – This is a spelling game. The first person says a letter. The second person adds another letter. The third person adds another letter and so on. You do not want to spell a word because if you do, you will get a “g.” The word has to be at least four letters long. If someone says a nonsense word, you have a right to challenge them to see what their word might be. If it’s not a legitimate word, then they get a letter. Every time you spell a word you get another letter from the word ghost. The first person to spell out ghost becomes invisible and you don’t talk to them.
What car games do you remember from your childhood?