Have you ever stopped to think about how much time you spend in the car with your kids? Between school, running errands, drop-offs at slumber parties and all the little stops along the way, you’re talking about a serious chunk of your family’s day. With that in mind, we devised a plan to turn car time into awesome time.

Our aim was to get the kids looking out those windows and discovering the big, bright and incredible world we live in. After a few brainstorming sessions around the kitchen table, we ended up with a simple DIY travel game that will have the entire car discovering, reading and engaging with each other (instead of begging for your iPhone).

A to Z: What Do You See! is a backseat game that fits neatly into your child’s cup holder and takes car games to the Alpha Level. To get started, simply print out and assemble the A to Z tokens and cups for each child and let the games begin!

• A to Z: What Do You See! printable (download here)
• 8.5 x 11 paper
• Party ice cream cup
• Printer
• Scissors
• Glue stick

Step 1
Download and print the A to Z: What Do You See! printable. Instruct your kids to cut out and assemble their A to Z cups with the scissors and glue stick.

Step 2
Once you’re in the car, Mom or Dad begins the game by pulling a letter from the stack and passing it around to all the players (aka your kiddos).

Step 3
Whoever spots that letter from outside the window first (from billboards, license plates, buildings, signs, etc.) gets to put that token in their cup. At the end of the car ride, everyone counts their tokens and the player with the most wins!

This game is great for short and long car rides. When it’s just me and my six-year-old, we like to play a time trial version to see how many letters she can spot from the time I pick her up from school until we pull in the driveway at home. It’s endless fun!

Happy trails :)