All summer long, families are on the move – in cars, buses, trains, planes, and boats. No matter where you are going or how you are getting there, the success of the “getting there” part of your trip depends on how well you plan ahead.
While we devote our travel-planning energy to the details of when, how, where, and how much, we don’t always figure in the kids. Children need to be busy. The younger the child, the more you will need to be involved in pulling together their favorite activities in containers, bags, and boxes so they can delight in discovering their contents. You will also need to plan to spend sit-down time with your children and instigate play yourself.
Children learn to play from you. Don’t forget to sing songs, hold finger plays, and listen to story podcasts.
It is important to be patient and help your child learn to hear the cue to turn the page. Very young children should not be “set in front of” videos in the car or at home. They benefit more from talking, rhyming, singing, storytelling, and laughing over and over, and then some! These are vocabulary-building years. You just can’t talk, read, or sing too much.
As your child gets older and more verbal, give him or her books about your upcoming trip. Most of these can be found at your local library. Or, you could make picture books to familiarize your child with where it is he or she is going. To do this, cut out pictures from brochures or maps that relate to your trip and, if you like, you may add words, too. Paste them on colored paper cut to the size of sandwich bags. Insert photos, and punch holes in the “zip lock” side of the bag and tie together with ribbon. Your child will love the anticipation of getting to your destination, and will be “familiar” with this new place. (You could even include pictures of the family members and friends you expect to see when you get there.)
Your kindergartener and school-age kids will love road games, watching the map on our phones and planning for breaks and for meals. Road signs are a great source for hangman game words. They also can be used for spelling bees, story strings (you start with words from a billboard, and then the children take turns using billboards and signs to continue the story). Plot out your trip on a map with your kids. They will be able to anticipate when and where breaks and gas stops need to occur.
In short, all children really need on trips are fun activities; exercise for their growing, wiggly bodies; and a sense of knowledge about where they are going and some power over what they can do when they get there.
Happy traveling!
Vicki Thrasher Cronin is the director of community and civic engagement at Ready 4 K. She has worked in early childhood education for 30 years.
