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How to Create Your Own Car Game

If your elementary-school-age child is constantly racing his metal cars around the house, design your own car-themed board game to hold his interest during family game nights. Use basic craft supplies to create a board game that resembles a two-lane highway and design entertaining and educational questions that players must answer to race toward the finish line. Before playing, let your child choose an assortment of his favorite toy vehicles to use as game pieces throughout the handmade car game.

Things You'll Need

12-inch-by-12-inch black cardstock
5- and 10-inch dinner plates
Yellow gel or paint pen
Pencil
Green circle and checkered flag sticker
White gel or paint pen
Car-related stickers
Trophy die cut or sticker
Red, green or yellow cardstock
Scissors or paper trimmer
Pen
Toy cars

Instructions

- 1
  Make the car game board with a 12-inch-by-12-inch piece of black cardstock. Create a game track that resembles a road by tracing 5- and 10-inch dinner plates in the center of the cardstock with an opaque yellow gel or paint pen.
- 2
  Use a pencil to draw 12 lines cutting across the track to generate 12 even spaces. Place a green circle sticker on one space to indicate the starting point and a "checkered flag" sticker on the spot to the immediate left of it to indicate the finish line. Use a white gel or paint pen to draw dashes in the center of the rest of the spaces to resemble lane dividers.
- 3
  Decorate the corners of the game board with car-related embellishments. Use stickers of road or speed limit signs, cars or sights along a highway like barns, flowers, animals or houses. Place a large accent in the center of the game board such as a trophy die cut or sticker as the "prize" for the winner of the game.
- 4
  Cut 50 to 60 2-inch-by-3-inch pieces of red, green or yellow cardstock with scissors or a paper trimmer to make the game cards. Use a pen to write one car-related question, task or word game on each card. Write questions about different car parts, cars from famous movies or your family vehicles. Create tasks such as pantomiming driving down a busy road, backing out of a parking space or waiting impatiently at a red light. Use word games like unscrambling car- and driving-related words like gas, muffler or speed limit.
- 5
  Buy a selection of 1-inch toy cars from a toy or dollar store to be the game pieces. Use larger cars if desired, but instruct the kids to place them around the "start" space since they won't all fit into the small square.
- 6
  Start the car game by letting the youngest child select a card and either answer the question, perform the task or pass the card to another player. If the player answers the question or completes the task correctly, he moves ahead one space. If he gets it wrong, he moves back one space. The winner of the car-themed game is the first player to reach the finish line first.

Kids Games