Ideas to Entertain 3-Year-Olds During Car Trips

When your travel plans involve a road trip with children, advance planning and preparation will ensure that everyone stays happily occupied in the car. Entertaining a 3-year-old in the car may prove challenging, but a little creativity and ingenuity will enable you to plan engaging activities to pass the hours in the vehicle happily.

  1. Portable Entertainment

    • The options for portable entertainment are many, so pack several different electronic devices that your 3-year-old could use. A portable gaming device loaded with apps and educational games might keep your youngster happily occupied as the miles fly by. A portable DVD player and a collection of your youngster̵7;s favorite DVDs should also provide enjoyable entertainment for your little one. In a pinch, you could even install a few games on your smartphone and hand it over to your child to keep him busy.

    Music and Audio Books

    • Many 3-year-olds enjoy music and the opportunity to belt out a song with gusto. A personal audio device filled with a playlist of your youngster̵7;s favorite songs could provide hours of happy singing and listening. You could even burn a playlist to a CD and play songs on the vehicle sound system so the whole family can sing along. Listening to books on audio might also appeal to your little one. Try recording yourself reading his favorite books. If you pack the books, he can then turn the pages as he listens to the recording.

    Packing Surprises

    • It never hurts to have some surprises packed away for those times when your youngster feels restless and needs something to engage her attention. Shop before you leave to find little items and entertaining toys that you can provide at random times throughout the trip. Fill a surprise bag with items such as stickers, adhesive note paper, coloring books, crayons, storybooks, notebooks, pencils and small stuffed animals or dolls. Offer an item from the bag occasionally throughout the trip to keep your child happily busy.

    Snacking

    • Whiling away the miles by munching is a popular pastime for youngsters stuck in a vehicle. Have a generous supply of snack items to give to your child. Ideas for snack foods include dry cereal, dried fruit, granola bars, crackers, squeezable fruit pouches and juice boxes. You might also provide your child with a leak-proof water bottle filled with water if she̵7;s thirsty.

    Family Games

    • Engage the family in entertaining games during the trip. One suitable game for a 3-year-old could be a memory game in which each player states an item to add to a suitcase. As play rotates through players, everyone must say the items added by other players and add a new item. Another game involves naming items seen out vehicle windows according to the alphabet. Your 3-year-old may need some help with this, but would probably enjoy participating in the game. Try playing ̶0;I Spy̶1; with one person choosing something for everyone else to take turns guessing.

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