Search Results for: blog an anytime anywhere game

Make a Guess by Touch Game

The other day at the toy store I noticed a new toy. To play, you stick your hand in a small black plastic dome. The door to the dome is covered with strips of fabric so that don’t see inside. The toy also comes with small plastic objects, the idea being that you try to guess what object you are touching. I’m sure the prepackaged game is fine, but it’s so easy to make your own. One of our standard Christmas party games is to guess what’s in the stocking. It’s a great game for utilizing your brain, and developing … Continue reading →

Bulls and Cows – a logic game

Kids love to crack codes, and its fun to use our brains. Here’s an easy to learn code cracking game that some schools are using to teach logical thought processes. I’ve even seen questions based on this game on middle school tests. The game is called Cows and Bulls. It’s similar to Mastermind, but you don’t have to buy anything to play it. You can play on a white board, or just a piece of paper. You need at least two people, but you play on teams or play cooperatively. One player thinks of a four digit number without zeros. … Continue reading →

An Anytime Anywhere Game

I’m usually good about planning activities ahead of time. But sometimes we end up waiting much longer at the doctors than we had planned, or flights get canceled, or the restaurant is packed, or the movie is sold out and we have to wait for the next one. And so, we are stuck—waiting, with nothing to do. Here’s a game to play that takes no special equipment and can be adapted for small children all the way to adults. Take a few things out of your pocket or pocket book, or the restaurant table. Examples are a few coins, a … Continue reading →

Hotel Room Fun for Family Travel

Nighttime is sometimes the hardest part of the travel day. Children are tired of being cooped up in the car and are cranky. Adults are tired of being cooped up in the car, and are trying not to be cranky. Sometimes it’s really hard to get everyone settled down. If the hotel has a pool, use it – even though it’s a hassle to get everyone changed. Something about the water makes everyone more relaxed, and it makes the kids sleep better. Ditto for a playground or play area. Packing just one overnight bag with everyone’s stuff makes getting in … Continue reading →

Penny Football

Summer travels often bring some unexpected down time. Penny football is a good game to fill up some moments. Since this is a casual lunchroom developed game, there are several versions of rules. All you need to play are three pennies, two players, and a table. A smallish table works best. You can still play on a large table, but you may want to state boundaries so that the coins don’t get to far off track. Flip one of the coins to see who goes first. The winner of the coin toss places the three coins in a triangular formation … Continue reading →

Layover Fun

Last week our family had a three hour layover in the Atlanta airport. We went in search of something substantial for dinner because I’ve decided we all are better travelers with real food in our stomachs. We just happened to find a country cooking restaurant and were thrilled to order macaroni and cheese, green beans, corn bread, okra, and iced tea. Even though we weren’t staying in Atlanta, it was nice to share this taste of the south with my kids. For me, occupying children on layovers is one of the hardest challenges of traveling. After one flight, everyone is … Continue reading →

The Sense of Sight – Looking at the World Through Rose-Colored Glasses

The sight may seem to be the easiest of the senses to promote for your little one and the truth is – it is the easiest. After all, you just have to hold things up for them right? The answer to that is yes and no. You see, your toddler doesn’t have your ability to filter out all the background sights to focus on individual objects without some effort. The world is a kaleidoscope of images, colors, shapes and sizes. You can play games like peek-a-boo to sharpen their acuity for focusing on specific objects. After all, when you are … Continue reading →