Family Walking Games
How to Keep Kids Amused When Walking
It is important that
everyone in the group be able handle the distance. You will want
plenty of roadside attractions so you can stop along the way.
Ponds, streams, playgrounds, ice cream stands, and picnic areas are
great spots for the kids get take a break. While walking why not
play a game. The classic travel games will go a long way on a walk
and it will keep the kids so busy they will not even think about the
time.
Alphabetical Trip
This is a fun
and easy car game that let's the kids use their imagination.
One person
starts with the letter "A" and says, "I'm going on a trip, and I'm going
to bring ____ " and names something that begins with the letter "A." The
next person repeats what the first person said, and adds something that
starts with a "B." The next repeats what they said, but adds a "C" item,
and so on until someone can't remember the whole list. For small
children, don't repeat and just let them add a new item that is the next
letter of the alphabet.
Count to win
Pick a theme – it can be anything. Some
examples are Cars, Pick-up Trucks, Houses, Trees, Stop Signs, Flowers,
Birds, Dogs etc… Set a timer for 30 minutes.
Start to count all the items that you find along your path. The
person with the most when the timer goes off is the winner. Sounds
like a fun game right?
Special
Sound
Select a sound like a dog barking, a
person talking, or a bird chirping. Have everyone line up in
a straight line and start to walk. When you hear the special sound
the front person runs to the back of the line and the walk continues
until everyone has had a turn in the lead.
I Spy
Look
around and pick an object you can see. Then
give others a clu
e such as, "I spy with my little eye... something
blue.” Continue to give more clues until they guess the object.
Every kid loves to play I Spy, so why not use it on your
walk to keep them amused? You can always change the rules to mix
it up a little. For instance, everything that you pick must be
natural like grass, trees, flowers, or a pine cone.
Guess Who?
Think of a friend or relative and then give a hint to help the rest of
the family figure out who the mystery person may be. For example, "It
is a female". Each person then gets a turn to ask a question to help
figure out who it is. The first person may ask “Does she wear
glasses?” You answer the question and they take a guess. If they are
not correct it goes to the next person who has a chance ask a question
but if they are correct they get to select the next mystery person.
This is a great game since it is
about someone that they know!!
Name That Song
Each person gets a turn at
selecting a word and then everyone else has to see if they can come up
with a song that uses the word. The key here is that they have to sing
the song! For example: Someone gives the word “cheeseburger” What
song has cheeseburger in it well someone begins to sing Jimmy
Buffet’s “Cheeseburger in Paradise”. You can take it a step further and
then ask who the artist is who sang the song.
Spice up the Walk
Randomly add crazy things as you are
walking along. For instance have them run to a stop sign, hop 10
times, skip to the end of the block. The diversity will keep them
amused and if you participate in the craziness it will be even more fun.
