Your kids won’t be in the backseat of the car, whining and complaining about how long it’s taking to get to your travel destination; they’ll be too busy playing. Of course, there’s only so much you can do while strapped in a seat but there’s one game that definitely fit’s the bill. Make a simple travel bingo set and the kids will play for hours. And, since the game doesn’t require any loose pieces, you won’t have to stop the car to pick up a dropped game piece.
A large piece of thin cardboard is perfect for making the car bingo set. You’ll need one piece of cardboard for each child. To turn the cardboard into a bingo card, first fold it in half and crease the fold well. Lay the folded card in front of you so that the open end is facing you and the fold is opposite you. Open the card flat.
Cut squares of construction paper and write something on each one. Make sure all the squares are somewhat small and are all the same size. Things you can write on the papers are things the kids might see while you’re traveling. One paper can say “car”, one can say “mailbox”, and another can say “camper”. Just be sure to make each card different, eliminating some words, adding others, and shuffling where the words appear.
Glue the square papers to the cardboard, on the inside, and only on the bottom half of the card. Arrange them in a checkerboard pattern with small spaces between each paper, and each row.
Close the card and, on the top, create a drawn copy of the inside arrangement. Use one of the blank construction paper squares as a pattern to draw the squares on the card. With a craft knife, cut around three sides of each square, then bend the cardboard on the fourth side. The bended side should be on the right of the square.
When kids play the car bingo game, each door is opened, and as the child spots an item on the board, he or she shuts that door. When a whole row of doors – whether vertical, horizontal, or diagonal – is closed, he or she calls “bingo”. Prizes can be small – suckers, stickers, temporary tattoos, etc. Keep the bingo game – as well as some small prizes – in the car; kids will want to play every time you travel.
Car Bingo