For parents traveling with their children, teachers on the go with their class, or even camp counselors and scout leaders hiking with their charges, these words games will keep kids’ minds challenged. None of these games require paper, so they are perfect to pull out at any time without the need to prepare game pieces beforehand.
Occupation Word Game
In five minutes, challenge the group to name as many jobs as they can. Tally the number of occupations as the children call out professions. If someone names a job that has already been named, the group has to start over. For adults worried that they won’t remember what has been said without writing everything down, keep this in mind – once you tell the rule to the kids, they’ll let you (and the player) know if something has been repeated!
Alphabet Category Game
Select a topic like cars, colors, animals, flowers, cereals, snack foods, etc. Next, try to come up with twenty six items for that category that corresponds with each letter of the alphabet. Run through the alphabet in order. If after thirty seconds, the group can’t come up with something that starts with a particular letter, skip the letter and keep going. Keep score for the words the group comes up with.
License Plate Game
While on the road, watch for license plates with letters in the pattern. Each time a car passes the vehicle the group is traveling in, they must name an animal that starts with each of the letters before another vehicle drives past the group. For another challenge, just look at the first letter on the license plate and try to name as many animals as possible that start with that one letter.
Name Game
If children have ever looked at the names of the individual crayons in a pack, they may have been tickled to see names like ‘macaroni and cheese.’ Point out that companies are always trying to come up with clever names to describe the colors of cars and nail polishes, the flavors of ice creams, and the fragrances of candles.
Select a theme, such as candles, ice cream, or colors. Have the children call out, or go around the group and allow individuals to speak, as they name the scents of candles, the colors of cars, or the flavors of ice creams. Be sure to give time for the children to connect the color or flavor to a product. For example, a wall paint called ‘Good Fortune’ that is the color of a Chinese cookie.
Alliterative Sentences
Dare individual children or the group to create sentences in which every letter starts with the same letter. Words like "the,' "a," "an," "and," "but," etc. all count. Although they may start with short three to five word sentences, challenge them to work up to ten or twelve word sentences. Slurp simply scrumptious soups simmered slowly!
Opposites Word Game
One child says a word and another child must then say a word with the opposite meaning. The child who completed the pairing can then start a pairing by saying another word or another child can speak up. Try to state opposites in rapid-fire succession, tallying the number stated in five minutes. Hot/cold, coming/going, he/she, etc.
These word games don’t require paper or pencil and can be played while traveling, either by foot or vehicle. Although one child could play these games, a group will test one another’s quick-thinking vocabulary powers.
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