14 ways to keep your kids amused in the car

There are a number of games you can play with your kids that will keep the "are we there yets" at bay and enable the family to put the electronic devices away and have great traditional fun together.

Motus Haval has these suggestions lined up to keep the whole family entertained

1. Category Game: Choose a category like “groceries”, and then one person starts with naming something that can be bought at the grocery store that starts with the letter ‘A’, such as "apples". The next player would have to repeat the first person’s answer as well as add on a food that begins with the letter ‘B’. If you mess up, you’re out, and the game continues until only one memory-gifted player remains. Once that category is over, move on to a more challenging one like movies, animals or place names.
2. Card Games: Never underestimate the power of card games to keep your kids entertained. Bring along a set of cards from home and challenge kids to play their old favourites snap, go fish, and rummy – but don’t let noise levels get out of hand as these will distract the driver.
3. Family Spelling Bee: See who the champion speller in the family is by having an in-car spelling bee. Make sure words are appropriate for all age levels, so no one gets discouraged (not even Dad…). Try other challenges with your family such as trivia or singing competitions as well.
4. 20 Questions: An old favourite, 20 questions is a great game for inquisitive little ones. The game begins with one person choosing pretty much anything item they can think of. The first question for the guessers is usually "animal, vegetable, or mineral?" although it doesn’t have to be. Players then go through a litany of questions trying to determine the nature of the mystery object and answers can only be ‘yes’ or ‘no’. The winner is whoever guesses the object most quickly, or who can stump the other players with their object.
5. Family Storytelling: Inspire your family’s creative side by creating a group story. Someone begins by creating one line to a story (for example, "There once was a prince under a curse…") and each person must add one line to the story as you go. Mix it up by making the lines have to rhyme, or by pointing at players out of order to come up with a line on the spot.
6. Rock, Paper, Scissors: This classic game makes it easy to keep kids occupied. Players put their hands behind their backs and pull one out to reveal either rock (closed fist), paper (flat hand) or scissors (first and middle fingers in a "v")
7. Travel Scavenger Hunt:  Compile a list of objects for each child to find along the road. For example, you could have things like "brown cow" or "windmill". Anything that comes to mind that you might be passing will work. The winner is the first one to find everything on his or her list. If you want to make it more interesting you can make bingo cards with the objects placed on them to mark off before you leave on your journey.
8. Find the Car: Challenge your kids to find a list of different types and models of cars. Children interested in cars will find this game particularly enjoyable. You can make it more challenging by specifying a colour for more common models of cars or types of cargo.
9. Map Monitors: One easy way to keep children entertained on the road is to engage them in the process of the trip. Give each child a map of your trip and allow them to keep track of your progress using stickers, or colouring in.
10. Who Am I?: Keep your kids guessing with this easy and fun game. Think of someone you and your children know: a family member, neighbour, or friend, and give clues to the person’s identity like their hair colour, gender, or whether or not they wear glasses. Let each person guess and if no one gets it, continue giving clues until the answer is found figure it out.

With a little creativity and planning, you can keep your little ones entertained on even the longest journeys, creating on-the-road entertainment, a few opportunities to learn, and memories to last a lifetime.