24 Games You Can Play in the Car on Your Next Road Trip

by Kate LowethMarch 20, 2024

Getting to your destination can be part of the adventure when you have this handy list of car games in your back pocket

If you’re heading out on a road trip soon and want to ensure that the trip will be spent making memories with the kids (screen-free fun in the car is possible!), then we’ve got a list of car games just for you. To make your journey as enjoyable as possible, you’ll want to print out this list of easy games to play in the car. They don’t require any special gear, there are no pieces to lose, and they’re actually fun for parents and kids alike. Be sure to check out our list of road trip hacks that’ll make the drive even easier. Win, win, win!

1. The Alphabet Game: Find all the letters of the alphabet on things you pass along the highway. Variation: limit your finds to license plates or road signs to make it harder.

2. I Spy: This road trip classic has players starting with a vague clue like, “I spy something that moves” and the other players guessing from there. Only yes or no questions are allowed. Tip: put a limit to the number of questions so the rounds don’t go on for eternity.

3. Would You Rather: This is a fun one to get the kids thinking, with great questions like: “Would you rather live in the desert or on a deserted island?” Another good one: “Would you rather be able to control the weather or talk to animals?” Check out our list of would you rather questions for kids and our list of would you rather questions for teens. We even have would you rather questions for adults!

4. Fortunately/Unfortunately: This story-creation car game for kids starts with a sentence like, “Mom came home with a chocolate cake.” The next person has to continue the story with fortunately like, “Fortunately, it had sprinkles on it.” Turn passes to the next person who uses unfortunately like, “Unfortunately, they were made of wax.” Hilarity ensues.

5. Story Volley: A similar game is story volley where you take turns creating a story back and forth between two (or more) players. This one can go on forever!

6. Open-ended Questions: Learn a little more about your car companions with this game where you can ask any question you like. Good ones to start with: What’s your favorite animal? What superpower do you wish you had? What TV character are you most like?

7. Alphabet Game (Version 2): The flow of this game is to use this phrase, “My name is ______ and I’m married to _______. We live in ______ and are shopping for ________.” All words have to start with the letter you are on like, “My name is Amy and I’m married to Al. We live in Arkansas and are shopping for apples.” Then you move on to B.

8. Letter, Word, or Sentence Guessing Game: For back seat players only, you have one kid draw a letter, word, or sentence (depending on age) on the other player’s back. Try to guess what was drawn.

9. License Plate Bingo: Using a little notebook to keep track, try and find all the state license plates. This game can carry over from road trip to road trip as who has ever seen a Hawaii plate outside of Hawaii? Parents should be ready to verify any rare sightings (to prevent cheating).

license plate bingo is a game you can play in the car — iStock

10. 20 Questions: This game has you thinking of an item while your opponent has to guess what it is. Limit your questions to 20 so you don’t go totally insane. This game knows how it is to travel with kids, clearly. For little kids, you can limit it even further to a category like animals.

11. The Name Game: Good for teens and tweens, this game has you name a celebrity like Oprah Winfrey and the next person has to take the first letter of that celebrity’s last name to start their turn and name another celebrity like Will Smith.

12. Hot Sauce or Chocolate: A variation on this or that, this game has you choose which item between two that you’d rather give up. Start with hot sauce or chocolate, choose one (clearly chocolate is the one to keep) and the next person has to add another to the pair like peanut butter so now you’re choosing between chocolate and peanut butter.

13. The Vacation Memory Game: This is a fun car game for kids! The first person starts with, “I’m going on a vacation and I’m going to bring . . . ” and then they choose an item like sunscreen. The second person starts, “I’m going on a vacation and I’m going to bring sunscreen and . . .” and chooses a second item like beach towels. The game continues until someone messes up the order and forgets an item. You can make it trickier by going in alphabetical order.

14. Count the Item: Choose an item like an American flag, tractor, or Starbucks sign and see how many your crew can find while on your journey.

15. Yes-No-Black-White: In this car game for kids, one player is the questioner and one the answerer. The questioner asks a question, trying to get the answerer to say the words “yes, no, black or white.” The answerer needs to answer verbally and truthfully, without using the forbidden words.

16. The Animal Name Game: The first player picks an animal like a squirrel. The second player has to pick an animal that starts with the last letter of the prior animal, like “lion.” And on and on!

17. Skittles: In this game, you are looking for the holy grail: the yellow vehicle. See one and yell, “Skittles!” and get one point. You may have to set your own rules about whether yellow farm equipment and buses count or should be excluded (as a fleet of school buses could cause an early end to your gameplay).

kids enjoying games you can play in the car — iStock

18. Cheers to the Governor (the kid version): This is a collaborative memory game you can play in the car to get to a certain number. So, if your goal is to get to 21, you start by counting one by one in order. You start with one rule, usually that 7 and 11 are switched (instead of saying 7 the person who is supposed to say 7 will say 11, and the person who should say 11 will say 7). If you make it through all the numbers, someone makes up a new rule (clap twice instead of saying three, make an animal noise instead of 15), and start counting back at 1 with the new rule. If someone misses a rule, you start back at one. The goal is to get to the point where all of the numbers are replaced with rules.

19. State Capitals: Good for all you geography fans, get the kids to list the state capitals. You can do it in alphabetical order or quiz style.

20. Cows and Graveyards: You get a point for every cow you spot on your side of the car. Spot a graveyard and lose all points.

21. Name That Tune: Play a snippet of a song from the radio and try and guess the song and artist.

22. Restaurant Race: Each player gets a restaurant like McDonalds, Taco Bell, or Burger King and players count how many of their restaurants they can find along the way.

23. Rock-Paper-Scissors: This is a classic hand game that’s a perfect game to play in the car. Two players shoot rock (fist), paper (flat hand), or scissors (the peace sign) on the count of 1,2,3… shoot! Paper beats rock, rock beats scissors, and scissors beats paper. Try the best of three, or just keep playing down the road.

Our All-Time Favorite Games to Play in the Car

24. Off Limits: In this game, you choose words or phrases that are “off limits” like family member’s names, “hungry” or “are we there yet?” (Brilliant!)

25. The Quiet Game: The player who is quiet the longest wins! Save this one for when you are really desperate.

Here’s How to Have a ‘Yes Day’ with Your Family

by Jesseca StensonMay 23, 2023

If you find yourself spending all day repeating “No No No” to your kids, consider planning a ‘Yes Day’

No matter what type of parent you are, we’re betting you find yourself saying the word “no” more often than you ever thought you would. Give that word, and yourself, a break by surprising the kids with a Yes Day. What is a Yes Day? It’s exactly like it sounds. One day where kids get to request whatever they want (see rules below), and you go along for the ride. Will they eat way too much candy? Probably. Will it be one of the best days of the year for you and your family? Absolutely. Oh, and the trail of candy wrappers you’ll be picking up the day after? Worth it.

So, What Exactly IS a ‘Yes Day?’

A Yes Day sounds exactly like what it is—it’s a day where your answer to your kids will always be “yes.” Ice cream for breakfast? Yes. Wearing pajamas all day? Yep. Movie marathon? You got it. Before you decide this is a miserable idea, hear us out. With a few simple ground rules and a little prep, this day will become one that everyone in the family loves.

‘Yes Day’ Background

If the idea of a Yes Day sounds familiar (looking at you, Jennifer Garner fans) the idea originated from a book of the same name by Amy Rosenthal-Krause and Tom Lichtenheld. A little boy in the story gets a day when his parents can’t say no to anything. Sounds like a kid’s dream, right? But guess what? Saying yes to your kids teaches you something, too. Parents who indulge in a Yes Day report a feeling of closeness and connectedness with their kids. And guess what that results in? Kids listen better. One mom told us that after her first Yes Day with her son, she discovered just how many times she automatically said no, to herself and her kid, when she didn’t need to.

It’s Not As Scary As You Think

Of course, the concept of allowing your kids to run wild for a day where you can’t say no would be alarming. But not if you lay out the boundaries, first. The first thing to remind kids is that a Yes Day is one day, and the requests cannot be something that causes harm to themselves or anyone else.

Second, you also get to ask the kids to do things: but your ground rules are that you shouldn’t ask them to do additional “boring” stuff beyond their everyday chores, homework, etc. You should ask them to do random things, like “Do you want to run around the house four times with me?” Or, “Do you mind if I wear your fairy wings?”

Make sure you are clear with the kids that a Yes Day only lasts for a day, meaning any requests made cannot take place over a series of days, or in the future. Plus, you can limit the amount of travel you’re able to do in one day. (i.e.: no spur-of-the-moment trips to Disney.) This can also apply to how much money it costs. Set a budget you’re comfortable with, and it will remove some anxiety about what they can choose.

You can ease into Yes Day by trying a Yes Morning or Yes Afternoon. Pick your day in advance, too, to encourage kids to plan “Mom, can we have a jump rope competition?” Save it for Yes Day! Besides, the anticipation is half the fun.

And the real golden rule? Don’t do it on a weekday/schoolday/workday.

Above all, you know your kids best. And the chances of them asking for something outlandish are pretty slim. The real joy comes from hearing “Yes.”

Some Cool Ideas for Your ‘Yes Day’

father and son having fun for yes day — iStock

If you’re on the fence about whether this could work in your family, maybe some ideas for Yes Day will convince you to do it. This will vary depending on the ages of your kids, but keeping it simple will help it work across the board. In the days leading up to your selected day, you can drop some hints about what activities would be cool to do on Yes Day.

Consider a family game night, and get a new board game or two to have on hand.

Head to a local park where you swing with them on the swings or play that endless game of tag.

Eat dessert before dinner.

Keep a bunch of crafting supplies on hand and be ready to create.

Do crazy, messy science experiments.

Build an epic fort.

Remember, the key is for the kids to see you enjoying yourself doing the things that they value.

Why You Should Do It

While you may think there’s nothing constructive to come out of learning how to have a Yes Day with your family, the benefits might surprise you. With just one day a year, you’re empowering your children to make decisions, as silly as they may be, and allowing them to see a different side of you. Hearing no all the time can be a little defeating, for both you and them, and giving them authority for one day teaches them how to use it. Not only that, but also permitting yourself to be relaxed and carefree one day a year prompts you to live in the moment, much like kids do every day, and enjoy every minute. You’re making memories that will last a lifetime for both you and the kids, full of giggles and most importantly, time spent together.

57 Best Dad Jokes for Kids to Make Them Laugh Out Loud

by Amber GuetebierApril 10, 2023

Yes, dad jokes for kids are a little silly, but also a lot of fun

When does a joke become a dad joke? When the punch line becomes apparent. (Har har!). You’ve cringed, laughed, and even been known to repeat them on occasion. The good news is that kids get a real kick out of them. Once you’re done with these cheesy dad jokes, try out the best jokes for kids, jokes that are good for school kids, and riddles that’ll keep the kids puzzled.

Typical Dad Jokes for Kids

father and son laughing at dad jokes for kids — iStock

-I used to hate the hokey pokey, but I really turned myself around.

-Is the refrigerator running? Better go catch it!

(yeah, that one hurt us, too...)

-Why did the bicycle keep falling over?

It was two tired.

-What do you call a man who tells dad jokes but isn’t a dad?

A faux pa.

-Dad: I told my kids to embrace their mistakes, then they hugged me.

-I entered a pun contest. I submitted 10 of my best puns to see if any would be a win.

However, no pun in ten did...

-Hey kids, I got you Fortnite. But it will only last two weeks.

-What’s the secret to a good elevator pitch?

It has to work on many levels.

-Want to hear a long joke?

Jooooooooooooooke.

-What does a house always wear to a party?

Address.

-Charlie Chaplin and Marcel Marceau just threw microphones into the sea. Guess it’s true that great mimes sink a mic.

-Have you heard how popular the local cemetery is?

People are just dying to get in.

-Kid: I’ll call you later!

Dad: Just call me Dad!

-When does a joke become a Dad joke?

When the punch line becomes apparent.

-This pencil has two erasers. It’s totally pointless.

Food-Related Dad Jokes for Kids

two dads laughing at dad jokes for kids — iStock

-What kind of drink is bittersweet?

Reali-tea

-What do the royals put on their pancakes?

Sir Up.

-My kid just asked me "Can I have this, apple?"

Guess he doesn’t know my name is Dad.

-Dad: Did you hear the butter rumor? Well, I'm not going to spread it.

-Why Did the vegetable call the plumber?

It had a leek.

-What do you get when you coddle a cow?

Spoiled milk.

-Dad: Another word of caution. Never tell secrets near a cornfield. They’re all ears.

-How many apples are growing on that tree?

All of them.

-Why did the man buy so much yogurt?

To get cultured.

-Time to take this cookie to the hospital! It’s feeling crummy.

-Evaporated milk is confusing. There's so much liquid in it.

-Dad to kid: Where are French fries from?

Kid: France?

Dad to kid: Greece!

-Dad to kids at dinner: I would tell you my pizza joke but it’s just too cheesy.

-What do you call a band of berries playing music?

A jam session.

-How do you fix a broken tomato?

With tomato paste.

Science Dad Jokes for Kids

-“Kara, on average, how far can a dog run into the woods?”

"Gee, Grand Dad, I don’t know.”

“Half way. After that, the dog is running out of the woods.”

—Grand Dad jokes 49-52 submitted by our hilarious reader Dave

-Did you ever notice ants don't get sick?

They're full of anti-bodies.

-I can't find the U-Cut tree farm. I'm completely stumped.

-Doctor, doctor, I'm terrified of squirrels!

[Doctor] You must be nuts.

—Jerry C., faithful reader

-Dad: This book about how Newton discovered gravity is so good! I just can’t put it down.

-What do you call a fish with four eyes?

Fiiiish!

-Why doesn’t a photon need a suitcase?

Because it’s traveling light.

-Dad to kid (in a serious voice): A word of advice, kid. Never trust atoms. They make up everything.

-How does a musician win a fight?

They call for Bach up.

-Kid: Why are you talking to yourself, Dad??

Dad: I needed an expert's advice.

-Dad: I am giving away all my batteries...free of charge!

-How do you know carrots are good for your eyesight?

Have you ever seen a bunny wearing glasses?

Did you hear the one about the claustrophobic astronaut?

He just needed a little space.

Body-Related Dad Jokes

-How do you make a Kleenex dance?

Put a little boogie in it!

-“You have a hole in your sock, Jack.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Sure you do. That’s how you got your foot in it.”

-"Wow! Chase, you sure got tall. I hope you don’t grow another foot.”

“Why not Grand Dad?”

“Because if you do, Mommy will need to buy you a third sneaker.”

-"Grand Dad, you look pretty sharp. Where did you get your haircut?”

“On my head, Shane.”

-Dad tells kids: Here’s a cautionary tale. Don’t sing in the shower!

-Kid: Dad, did you get a haircut?

Dad: No, I got them all cut.

-Dad: I never thought I’d be the type to have a beard. But then it just grew on me.

Kids: What?? Why not?

Dad: If you get soap in your mouth, it will turn into a soap opera.

Kids: GROAN!!!!!

-Kid: Dad, it hurts when I move my arm like this.

Dad: Then don’t move your arm like that.

-Why do skeletons stay so calm?

Because nothing gets under their skin.

-What do you call someone with no nose and no body?

Nobody knows.

-Did you hear about the dad who chugged 8 sodas?

He burped 7-Up.

-Kid to Dad: Why are there balloons in the bathroom?

Dad: I wanted to throw you a birthday potty.

-What do you call a 12-inch nose?

A foot.

-Dad, can you put my shoes on?

"Nope. They are too small for my feet."

11 Cool Things You Might Not Know about LA

by Andie HuberMarch 6, 2023

Pop Quiz: Do you know how the Lakers got their name? Or which Disney princess has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame? All the answers and more LA-inspired trivia, right this way.

LA is a magical place and along with that, comes some magical history and only-in-LA trivia. Impress your family and stump the kids with these little-known Los Angles facts. How many do you know?

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1. In 1978, Mickey Mouse was the first animated character to earn a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Other characters with their own star include Minnie Mouse, Shrek, Winnie the Pooh, and Big Bird. Oh, and Donald Duck, too! And only one Disney Princess has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Hint: She survived a poisonous apple. Yep, Snow White.

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A post shared by Janeth DeLacoste Garcia (@janethlacoste20)

2. A whopping 202 street lamps make up the Urban Lights installation in front of LACMA. And the coolest part? All of those 202 lamps are from the 1920s and 1930s and were originally spread throughout Southern California.

Courtesy of the Security Pacific National Bank Collection – Los Angeles Public Library

3. It used to snow about once a decade in Los Angeles and actually stick to the ground. The picture above is La Brea Blvd. in 1921. Unfortunately, it hasn't snowed since 1962—we are in a 50-year-plus snow drought.

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A post shared by Bailey (@adogsjourneywith_bailey)

4. The carousel, now located at the Santa Monica Pier, was originally built in 1922 for the Venice Pier, but moved to its current Santa Monica location in 1947. In addition to the 44 hand-carved equine beauties, there are two additional animals that go round and round—can you guess? A rabbit and a goat. Next time you are there, see if you can find them.

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A post shared by Los Angeles | Explore (@losangeles.travelers)

5. The iconic Hollywood sign was built in 1923 but it didn't originally spell out "HOLLYWOOD" but instead "HOLLYWOODLAND." It remained that way until 1949 when the "LAND" portion was removed.

Security Pacific National Bank Collection via Los Angeles Public Library

6. The LA Zoo is not the original LA Zoo. In 1966, more than 2000 animals were moved from the Old Griffith Park Zoo (which was built in 1914) to the zoo's new location, two miles away. You can still visit the old zoo's stomping grounds—heck, you can even have a picnic there.

7. You don't have to go all the way to Anaheim to visit some historic Disney artifacts. Walt Disney's original barn and workshop, where he controlled his 1/8^th scale model railroad, is located on the north side of Griffith Park, where it's now part of the Los Angeles Live Steamers Museum. If you want an up-and-close visit, they allow guests to visit every 3rd Sun. of the month. Check their Facebook page for the latest information.

8. Ever wonder how LA basketball team the Lakers got its name? The Lakers originated in Minnesota, aka “Land of 10,000 Lakes," before coming to LA in 1960.

9. LA by the numbers: A little over 10 million people live in Los Angeles County—that's about the same as the population of the entire country of Sweden. There are 7.8 million cars registered in the area, 3.9 million people commute every day by car and the average Angeleno spends 119 hours a year stuck in traffic. That's equivalent to five days. Yikes!

10. Love LA's iconic Palm trees? They may not be around much longer. They are not native to the area and were planted solely for their looks. A vast amount of them were planted in the 1930s (in just 1931, 25,000 of them were planted!) and are now nearing the end of their lifespan and are unlikely to be replaced.

11. The County of Los Angeles Fire Department's Forestry Division has a special way to reduce the risk of fire. They use goats! The grazing goats clear brush along steep mountainsides.

When He’s Not the Best Husband—but He’s Still a Good Father

By Tammy Letherer

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

June 9, 2022

I had been divorced for a couple of years when my former husband called with a surprise. Thankfully, it wasn’t the type of surprise he delivered the night he sat me at the table and told me he had been unfaithful for more than a decade and was leaving me for someone he met in Las Vegas.

No, this surprise had to do with our 12-year-old son. He said he was taking him to China for a vacation. I got that feeling you get when you walk in on a conversation, and everyone is laughing and looking at you like you know what they’re talking about.

China?

How had this come about? I searched my memory for some mention of anything remotely Chinese on my son’s wish list. Had the two of them been to see the First Emperor’s Terracotta Warriors on display at the Field Museum? Or taken a school field trip to Chinatown that I didn’t know about?

The only connection I could come up with was my son’s collection of Pokemon cards, but those are Japanese.

“Um… that would be cool, I guess,” I said, still processing the random nature of his declaration. By the time I gathered my thoughts enough to pose some questions and concerns, he announced that he had bought tickets to travel during a school week and over days that were technically mine on the parenting schedule.

“I can’t change it,” he said. “If I do, I’ll have to pay $1,000 and I know you don’t want that.”

What I didn’t want was to be told what to think or how to feel. An immediate, familiar pressure gripped my chest as I recalled all the activities and decisions that had already occurred behind my back. That he would plan something so extravagant for our son without discussing it with me felt too unfair. I was already struggling with the realities of co-parenting our three children, still getting used to the myriad ways a divorced mom must learn to let go as she is eased out of her job.

After college, I worked as a secretary in London for a few months and learned that, rather than firing people, workers are “made redundant.” It means the same thing but sounds so much nicer. I’ve been made redundant as a mother—no longer needed or useful in all the ways I once was.

This shows up in small ways:

Tell me about your science project. “I don’t want to talk about it. I told dad all about it.”

Want to see the new Marvel movie? “Sorry, mom, we saw it with dad.”

Guess what? I got pizza for dinner! (A chorus of groans.) “We had pizza two nights in a row with dad!”

And in big ways, like feeling helpless and broken during that stretch when my daughter called, in tears, begging to come home every time she was at her dad’s. Or having no words of comfort when my boys expressed their anger about their dad’s girlfriend moving in.

All of those impotent moments were triggered again by the thought of my son flying halfway around the world without me. I imagined him sleep-deprived and anxious from the long flight, wandering lost in a crowded street market, even starving, thanks to his finicky diet.

Overprotective? Maybe. But once your trust in someone is so completely shattered, how do you patch enough of it together to cover some areas and not others? I believe my kids’ dad is, as a parent, loving and devoted. But I believed that about him as a husband, too, and I was wrong.

I don’t blame myself for being guarded. I believe that any mother who has ever experienced betrayal would likely volunteer to go through it again rather than see her kids suffer a similar disappointment. At the same time, I have to be careful not to color my kids’ experiences with my disappointments. For me, this meant smiling while I packed a suitcase and waved bon voyage to my baby. It also meant feeling genuine happiness when my baby returned unscathed, unperturbed and a little more worldly.

Yes, I have learned some wonderful lessons on this road back from betrayal.

Here are the big ones.

Respond rather than react.

One of the best decisions I made early in the divorce process was to treat negotiations as business agreements and relegate them to emails rather than phone calls. That way, I can take my time and formulate a clear-headed answer on my timeline. Reacting equals losing power. Responding equals reclaiming power.

Have your facts straight.

In the case of the China trip, I assumed that my son couldn’t be taken out of the country without my permission. But when I checked our parenting agreement, I saw that my former husband only needed written permission from me for the first 24 months following the divorce. Wow. That shocked me, but there it was, in black and white.

Gathering the facts gave me time to gather my thoughts enough to get clear about my objections and whether they were ones I had a right to make. As galling as it is to have to follow rules with a rule-breaker who broke your heart, do it anyway.

Come from a “well-fed” place.

This is the juicy center, the meat inside the sandwich. Everything revolves around my ability to get quiet, tune in and take responsibility for my inner world. What are my motivations? Is this about me or my kids? Am I fighting for the sake of fighting? Am I settling an old score? Am I bored, lonely or craving drama? I need to look at whether I’m feeding myself what I need rather than entering into a “hungry” exchange with my former husband.

Of course, life, in its perfection, always provides us with opportunities to practice these skills. I had another chance when our daughter turned 13 and her dad decided it was her turn for an extravagant trip—to Thailand. This time I was prepared.

My response? Don’t forget your sunscreen.

Oh, and bring me back a Buddha.

Originally published in June 2018 on She Does the City.

Tammy Letherer

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

Tammy Letherer is an author, writing coach and blogger. She holds a degree in Journalism from Indiana University and has enjoyed a long, varied professional writing career. She is the author of a memoir, The Buddha at My Table (release date October 2018) and a novel, Hello Loved Ones. She lives in Chicago with her children.

13 Clever Cooking Games for Kids (It Might Get Them to Eat!)

by Nikki WalshApril 5, 2022

Playing with your food can be plenty of fun and it can entice reluctant eaters to try new things. Cooking games are a creative way to involve your budding chefs in meal prep, encourage their developing palates and even teach them some essential life skills. Bring your appetites and try out our picks for the best cooking games that make food fun.

Eat the Alphabet Challenge

Trying new foods can be a lot less intimidating when you tie it to something relatable, like the alphabet! This is an easy game that can stretch across an entire month. For example, start every day with a new letter of the alphabet, and challenge your kids to try a food that starts with that letter. It can be as easy as “D” for donut or up the ante with something a little more daring, like “D” for Dragonfruit. You can also add a scoring system to earn points for the most unique foods they can think up.

Superhero Kitchen

Want to get your kids to eat spinach and earn cool mom points? Of course, you do! Bulk up like the Hulk and gain superhero strength after making a batch of "Hulk Bread" or spinach muffins, like this recipe from Super Healthy Kids. Have your superpowered chefs help you with baking this tasty treat, and then you can all pretend to have hulk strength when you eat it.

Measure and Guess Game

Cooking with kids can be fun and educational. Shake things up a bit by turning the measuring of ingredients into a guessing game. If you’re making blueberry muffins, for example, fill the measuring cup and then have your tiny chefs guess how many blueberries are in the cup. Whoever guesses the closest gets to eat the first muffin! You can play this game with all sorts of different recipes and ingredients.

Bread in a Bag Game

Can you make bread in a bag? A great way to teach measuring and how to use fine motor muscles (kneading the bread!) is to have a cooking game challenge for kids. Our friends at Your Homebased Mom cleverly show the best way to do this. Shake, knead, bake and eat.

Cooking by Numbers & Letters

Cooking and counting go hand in hand and pretzels are easy to make. We love What We Do All Day's brilliant pretzel game using bread dough, salt, butter, a brush and a ruler. Besides practicing letters and numbers, little kitchen helpers can count out the dough pieces and measure the length of each rolled pretzel. We're sure these hot buttery treats will go fast!

Invent a Recipe

Creative cooking! Meal prep takes on limitless possibilities in this free cooking game brainstormed by our friends over at Tinkerlab. Let your little chefs invent their own recipes. Discover, create, validate (with you), then make their dish. Experimenting encourages independent thinking and problem-solving skills in the kitchen. Even more, eating what they make will be easy as pie.

Read & Make Cooking Game for Kids

Hot chocolate banana muffins take on a whole new meaning with the read and make game cooked up by Growing Book by Book. First, you read the book If You Give a Moose a Muffin together, then cook up a fresh batch with the littles.

Rainbow Cooking Game for Kids

Sometimes the simplest cooking games are the most fun. Who can resist a colorful rainbow fruit parfait courtesy of our friends Mama.Pappa.Bubba. Let your kids pick out fresh fruit at your local farmer's market. Then it's time to peel and chop. Add a whipped cream cloud on top–yum!

The Pizza Symmetry Game

It takes two! Making pizza becomes a free cooking game when you add in this genius idea from Fantastic Fun and Learning. You'll need pizza dough, sauce, cheese and toppings. Just put a string down the middle of the pizza and mirror your partner's topping placement. We're sure they'll chow down on their symmetrical creation.

Taste Test Game

Keep 'em guessing (and fully engaged) with this flavorful cooking game dreamed up by Create.Play.Travel. You'll need a muffin tin, food, paper and pen. Let your little one try the item (you can blindfold her too!) then say whether it's sweet, sour, spicy, salty or tangy. When cooking a meal have your kids decide the taste of the main ingredients.

Follow My Instructions Game

Easy as one, two, three. Le Coin de Mel fosters independent cooking and following directions in this toddler cooking game. Mamma Mel whips up a simple recipe to describe step-by-step to her little chef to make vegan gluten-free chocolate muffins. Expect a mess and for the muffins to go quickly!

Chopped Game for Kids

It's time for a cooking challenge! A fun and creative game to get kids cooking up a storm crafted by Life as Mom. You can play with two or more. Set out the ingredients to use in separate baskets. Then everyone shares pantry items to add flavor and taste. Put it all together, present it to the judge, and choose the best creation.

Banana Sushi Game

Chop, chop! Budding chefs can practice their fine motor skills by making this snack created by My Fussy Eater. Littles can peel the bananas, chop them up (with a kid knife), then roll them around in toppings like coconut, melted chocolate and rice Krispies. Have them rate each topping and pick a winner. The best part is eating with chopsticks.

—Taylor Clifton, Nikki Walsh & Shahrzad Warkentin

3 Easy Ways I Got My Kids to Love Cooking

17 Things Your Kids Should Do in the Kitchen Themselves

How to Write a Limerick with Kids

by Amber GuetebierMarch 15, 2022

Need an activity that doubles as a learning moment? Writing a limerick is actually simple when you learn the basics of its structure and it’s an excellent way to practice rhyming words with kids. While the origin of the limerick is unknown, many people believe it refers back to an Irish soldier’s song, “Will You Come Up to Limerick?”. Read on to get the simple tutorial on writing your own limerick with the kids!

1. Rhyme Time

A limerick has five lines.
The first, second and fifth lines all rhyme with each other.
The third and fourth lines rhyme with each other.

To
Who
Lock
Stock
Glue

2. Feel the Beat

The first, second and fifth lines (which all rhyme with each other) have the same rhythmic pattern:

Ba dum ba da dum da da dum (8 syllables)

The third and fourth lines (which rhyme with one another) have this pattern:

Ba dum ba da dum (five syllables)

3. Try it out

There once was a kid who was sad
(Ba dum ba da dum da da dum)
He made up a lie to his dad
(Ba dum ba da dum da da dum)
His pop knew the trick
(ba dum ba da dum)
And called it out quick
(ba dum ba da dum)
And now the kid’s ice cream’s gone bad
(Ba dum ba da dum da da dum)

A famous example:

Hickory, dickory, dock
The mouse ran up the clock
The clock struck run,
And down he run,
Hickory, dickory, dock!

4. Get creative!

Want to make it easier on little ones? Try a “fill-in-the-blank” method. Just take away a few of the rhyming words and have them guess the answers.

There once was a _____ from the farm
Who had sixteen hairs on his ______
Dog gave them a pull
Cat laughed like a _____
They never meant him any ____.

Haiku for You: Simple Haiku Writing for Kids

Fill-in-the-Blank Poetry Fun

Beyond Mother Goose: Best Poets for Kids

14 Classic Board Games That Are Just as Good as Ever

by Aimee Della BittaFebruary 17, 2022

Family game night is a great time to debut a new board game of the year might make their debut. But for those times when you’re looking for easy fun, keep a few tried-and-true games on hand. These classic board games have lasted for a reason: not only are they great for kids to play with other kids, but they are also well-suited to multi-generational play. The familiar rules make them quick to learn but tricky to win.

Candy Land

$12 BUY NOW

All the sweetness without the sugar crash! Go for the classic edition created to celebrate the game's 65th anniversary and experience sweet nostalgia when your primary-colored gingerbread man sets out on an adventure through the Gumdrop Mountains and Peppermint Stick Forest. It's a perfect first game, as it teaches little ones colors, counting and the fun of chasing ice cream floats. For ages 4 and up.

Chutes and Ladders

$13 BUY NOW

Some things are so simple! Break the rules and slide down the chute, do a good deed and climb up the ladder. This classic board game is full of ups and downs which keeps things exciting, and any game dishing out rewards to the littles for good behavior gets a giant thumbs up in our book. Best for ages 3 to 7.

Jenga

$6 BUY NOW

Great for hand-eye coordination (and developing patience) break out this old-school game of block stacking and crashing. As the tower grows so does the focus and anticipation. May the sturdiest (little) hand win. For ages 6 years and up.

Uno

$6 BUY NOW

This family fave is essentially a color-coded version of Crazy 8s. It also may be one of the most popular games around. It's easy to learn and a blast to play. And whether your tiny tike playing for the first time, or a great-grandparent playing for the 100th time, the chance to scream UNO never gets old. For ages 5 and up.

Sorry!

$7 BUY NOW

One of the first words kids learn (we hope!) to say is "sorry", and they'll get to practice their skills in this easy-to-learn and quick-to-master game. The goal is to slide, jump and collide your way around the board from start to finish, but get caught by an opponent and you'll be sorry! For ages 6 and up.

Monopoly (1980s Edition)

$25 BUY NOW

No credit card machine, no "Stranger Things" edition, just the classic Monopoly you grew up with. The real question is, do you put money in the Free Parking spot?

Connect 4

$10 BUY NOW

Connect Four is one of those low-key games that you can play with the kids even when you're tired (or they are). It's essentially just tic tac toe with a twist, making it a great early game for kids. The manufacturer recommends ages 6 and up but we think younger kids (3 and up) can enjoy it.

Scrabble

$19 BUY NOW

Learn critical thinking, strategy, and spelling with this classic board game. Best for kids 8 and up, but if you play with younger kids you can simplify by setting them up for easy words and giving second chances when words are misspelled. Keep a dictionary nearby just in case.

Battleship

$16 BUY NOW

This basic guessing game lets each player become a commander of the high seas. The idea is to search for enemy ships and eliminate them one by one. Your kiddo will love the game's realistic naval crafts and action-packed gameplay. For ages 7 and up.

Mancala

$24 BUY NOW

Up the coolness factor of this simple calculation bead game by telling your kiddo they're playing an ancient game that first popped up in Egypt and Africa. The object is basic—accumulate the most beads through a series of moves and captures—but winning is anything but. For ages 8 and up.

Checkers

$10 BUY NOW

Before they start beating you at chess, give them a chance to take over with Checkers, one of the simplest and most enjoyable of the classic board games.

Yahtzee!

$9 BUY NOW

With 13 rounds per game and a whole lot of dice shaking, this game requires an investment in time beyond the 15 minutes games like Operation or Chutes and Ladders takes, but there's something deeply satisfying about shouting your victory. For ages 8 and up, this game is an excellent multi-generational game.

Hi-Ho! Cherry-O

$13 BUY NOW

Get some at-home math fun with this fruit-pickin' classic board game. Spin the arrow, fill the "basket," and be the first one to clear the tree! For ages 4 and up.

Operation

$19 BUY NOW

"Operate" on Cavity Sam with the tweezers and carefully remove the little pieces without touching the sides. It's harder than it looks! The game with an electrical charge isn't just funny, it helps kids learn fine motor skills. Ages 6 and up.

Clue (Retro Series 1986 Edition)

$20 BUY NOW

There are several editions of Clue but if you want them to play the one you had when you were a kid, this is it. This classic game of "whodunit" allows kids to use the process of elimination to determine the weapon, location, and murderer. Ages 8 and up.

If you buy something from the links in this article, we may earn affiliate commission or compensation.

Mama Knows Best: 15 Cute Questions Kids Can Ask Their Parents

by Amber GuetebierJanuary 10, 2022

Sure, they know you as the star of breakfast and master chauffeur, but do your kids know about your family heritage? These 15 starter questions are aimed at kids interviewing their parents, grandparents, aunties, uncles or anyone they’d like. For older kids, you can play it as a guessing game: what did you name your first pet? Read on for more ideas.

1. Where were you born?

2. What year did our first family member come to this country?

3. What was your favorite candy as a child?

4. Tell us one story about your father.

5. Who cooked the most in your house?

6. What is the name of the street you grew up on?

7. What is your favorite color?

8. Did you have a childhood pet?

9. What’s your favorite memory of your mother?

10. What does our family last name (or last names) mean?

11. What is your favorite childhood memory?

12. What was your favorite toy as a child?

13. Tell us your favorite traditions you grew up with.

14. What was your first car?

15. What books did you love as a kid?

—Taylor Clifton, Amber Guetebier

Steve from “Blues Clues” is Back with a Special Video: “I Never Forgot You…Ever”

by Sarah ShebekSeptember 8, 2021

Remember Steve, the OG host of Blue’s Clues? Well, he still remembers you, even if it’s been quite a while since he starred on the animated show. 25 years after the show first appeared and 19 years after Steve left, he re-emerged with a touching message to celebrate the big anniversary.

“You remember how when we were younger we used to run around and hang out with Blue and find clues…and then one day I was like ‘oh hey, guess what? Big news, I’m leaving,” Steve starts the video. He goes on to let viewers know that he’s been able to pursue his dreams, even if the departure was sad and unexpected for young fans.

So about that time Steve went off to college… #BluesClues25 pic.twitter.com/O8NOM2eRjy

— Nick Jr. (@nickjr) September 7, 2021

But that’s not all. Steve has a special shout out for his now grown up fans and it might be a bit of a tear jerker! He ends the video with one last heartfelt (and humorous) message. “I’m super glad we’re still friends. You look great, by the way. Whatever it is you’re doing, it’s working.”

Since Steve exited the show in 2002, he’s pursued various musical and acting opportunities, including starting his own band and releasing a children’s album. But it’s safe to say Blues Clues, where he appeared in 100 episodes over six years, will always be his biggest hit. With 20.8 million views at the time of this publication, it’s obvious the show (and Steve) will never be forgotten.

—Sarah Shebek

Featured image courtesy of Nickelodeon

Meet Blue’s Clues Co-Creator Traci Paige Johnson

Get Your Own Thinking Chair! All the Blue’s Clues Toys Hitting Shelves in 2020

Getting to your destination can be part of the adventure when you have this handy list of car games in your back pocket

Our All-Time Favorite Games to Play in the Car

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1. Rhyme Time

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3. Try it out

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