On Youth and Teens Today with Vanessa Van Petten

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This week’s Saturday Advice Column is from:

“We are planning a family vacation for spring break this year and are thinking about taking a road trip.  I am worried my teenager and younger sibling are going to kill each other in the back seat, do you think there are things for them to do?

-MaryEllen” 

Oh, road trip huh.  I would definitely recommend playing car games.  I have two articles on traveling with teens that you should also read:

My Golden Rule for Holidays with Teens

5 Tips for Traveling with Teens 

There are four kids in our family with a 12 year age range, so this was always a problem for us.  Here are some games I can remember that we all liked and passed time quickly:

“Am I A…”
Bring some flashcards with you and have everyone write down a bunch of different celebrities and  famous people.  Each player picks a card without looking, shows everyone else and then has to ask yes or no questions.  If they get a yes answer, they get to ask another question, if it is a no, its the next person’s turn.  For example: “Am I a woman…Am I known for singing…Am I a bad mother…Am I Britney Spears?”

License Plate Games
There are all sorts of games you can play with license plates. You can collect the number of states you see. Find the highest number on a plate, ignore the letters, you can make words with the letters on the plate.

Twenty Questions
One player thinks of an animal, vegetable or fruit and starts off by saying, “I’m thinking of an animal, vegetable or fruit.” Everyone takes turns asking questions that are answered with ‘yes’ or ‘no’, or they may guess the answer during their turn. The first person who guesses correctly thinks of the next thing.

ABC Games
Pick a subject like cities, boys names, fruit, colors and everyone has to go through the alphabet and think of a thing for that letter.  No repeats, and you keep going around and around until someone cannot think of one!

Good luck, bring lots of snacks and water!

Vanessa