These games will expand your travel and family gathering repertoire beyond the usual "I Spy" and "Charades." Copy this article and keep it in your car or purse for instant learning fun.
Word Games
Play Teapot. One player picks a verb (action word), and the other players ask questions about the verb, replacing it with the word "teapot." For instance, if the word is "sing", then the question, "Do giraffes teapot?" would be answered, "No." Players keep asking questions until they guess the verb.
Make a word chain. Pick a topic, such as "breeds of dog" or "philosophers" or "foods Uncle Henry won't eat." One person starts with a member of the list, and the next person has to use the last letter of that word to start the next word. For instance, if the first player says, "Bichon Frise" for a breed of dog, the next player might say, "English Foxhound." The third player might rise to the challenge with, "Dachshund," and so on.
Have a spelling bee, but spell simple words backwards.
Pick a letter, then start a sentence with that letter. The next person must start a sentence with the next letter of the alphabet. This continues until the first letter is reached again. Try to make it resemble a conversation.
Playing Rhyme Time. Start with a sentence, such as, "It's going to rain." The next person has to come up with a sentence that starts with a word that rhymes with the last word of the first sentence. The third player must make his sentence start with a word that rhymes with the last word of the second sentence, and so on.
Stretch the Imagination
Imagine that you are someplace else, and give clues to your whereabouts: "I'm on a planet that is red, and has that has ice on its surface. It's cold here, and there are two moons in the sky. Where am I?" Mars, of course!
Pretend that you are designing a new set of crayons for a certain group of enthusiasts. Maybe dog lovers would like "Irish Setter Red", or gardeners would like "Zucchini green."
Indulge in a bit of "What if" history. Discuss what might have happened if Alexander the Great had lived to be 85, or if electricity had been harnessed by the Aztecs.
Come up with new sayings for fortune cookies.
Logic Games
Decide on a highest and lowest number, then have one person choose (and maybe write down) a number of their choice that is within the chosen limits. Players then try to guess the number. The chooser then says whether the number is higher or lower. For instance, if the number is 12, and the parameters are any whole number between 1 and 25, the player may say, "15", the chooser says, "Lower." The player then says "10." The chooser says, "Higher." The player tries 12, the chooser then says, "Right!"
Play the classic game "Twenty Questions." One person picks a person, place or thing. The other players try to guess what or who the person is thinking of by asking questions that can be answered with a yes or no. It's best to ask the earliest questions about general categories, such as, "Is it a person?" or "Is it alive?" and proceed from there.
With a bit of creativity, these games can be adapted for any group of people, from preschoolers to grandparents. Turn any restaurant wait or doctor visit into "school time" and help keep kids busy while encouraging them to think inventively.
