Car journey games that need no screen
Most car-game lists are written by people who have not tested them past ten minutes, or from the back of a moving car.
Car trip spotting sheet
A printable tally sheet of things to look for out of the window, in words, with boxes to mark. Played looking out, not down.
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The constraint nobody mentions: looking down
Anything that requires sustained looking down makes a lot of children carsick. The games that survive a long drive are the ones played by looking out. That single rule eliminates most printable car packs.
Spotting games, which are the good ones
A tally sheet of things you might see — a tractor, a bridge, a yellow car, roadworks, a horse — played by looking out of the window. It lasts for hours, needs no reading, and works for two children at once.
Talking games for when the light goes
Once it is dark, spotting dies. Would you rather. I am thinking of an animal. The story where everyone adds one sentence. No equipment, no light, no looking down.
Questions people ask
What age can play a spotting game?
From about three, if the things are common and pictureable. Keep the list short enough that the sheet gets finished — an unfinished sheet is a lost game.
How do I stop it becoming a competition that ends in tears?
Make it one shared sheet the whole back seat fills in together. There is nothing to win, and the sheet still fills up.
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