Joy Ride 2: Faith-Filled Fun & Games for Drivetime

During family car trips, children are notorious for asking the perennial question, "How much longer until we get there?" Now whether you are shuttling kids to a soccer game or on a long cross-country car vacation with the family, here's a valuable resource to turn your hours on the road into a valuable learning experience. JOY RIDE!, FAITH-FILLED FUN AND GAMES FOR DRIVETIME by Jaqueline Lederman (Tyndale House Publishers) is a part of the Heritage Builders series. Targeted for all ages of children, this book is packed with ideas. As the author writes, "The goal of this book is to provide families with a good Christian growth resource for use in the car." The information is divided into three sections: games, discussion starters and Bible challenges. The travel games help children learn new information and also use creative thinking to stretch children spiritually. As for keeping score, the author suggests you do what works for your child. If scoring and prizes motivate the child to play, then use it. The discussion starters contain several sections--jump start (to set the scene for discussion), speeding up (follow-up questions to continue the discussion), look at the map (a Bible verse to bring it into the conversation) and travel plan (the personal application section where children relate it to their lives). The final section, Bible Challenge, has three levels of difficulty: Easy, Moderate and Hard. No matter which type of question, the answers are included in the book and everyone in the family can increase their Bible knowledge from these challenges. The author includes a caution in the introduction to this book, "You are wise not to make every trip in the car into a Bible learning time, and not to make every game or discussion end with a pointed moral lesson. Use your drivetimes to develop your relationships with your children and find out how they are doing, how their friends are, what they're up to, and so on." This tool has potential for overuse but can be invaluable for every family with the right balance. When you're planning the next stint in the car, pull this small title from your glove compartment.

Great stuff in here. Some of it is WAY over my 4-yr old's head, but I think it will prove to be a great resource over the years to come

It's July! Pack the car with baggage, food, and the kids. Head for fun and relaxation. But first, prepare for the hours on the road. Make the most of the time with Joy Ride; Faith-filled Fun & Games for Drivetime by Jacqueline Lederman. The games, discussion starters, and Bible challenges will enable you to interact happily with your children. As an added bonus, even you may learn new information (Oh yeah - it might be a good idea to bring your Bible along on the trip.)For ease of use, the author has indexed activities by interest, trip destination, and topic. Plan to stick this paperback book in your glove compartment before you leave on vacation.