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For the first several month the kids were involved with reading the maps, planning destinations, and talking about the new senery and attractions. As time went on these activities become more routine as well.  Most people assume we drive more now than we did in our previous life.  Not true.  According to our odometer we drive about 25 to 30 thousand miles a year.  Cheryl and I each drove about that much every year before we started to travel.

Even before we started traveling fulltime, we used to do math and spelling while we drove with the kids.  We were suprised how many other activities can fill a day while driving from state to state.  We have also noticed that if certain materials or resources are available in the vehicle the kids will eventually pick them up for something to do.  One example was a harmonica and songbook.  The boys had lost interest in playing the harmonica about one week after they recieved them for Christmas.  But while driving along they picked them up and now play quite well.  Constantly providing material for new activities makes driving some of the best times we spend together as a family.
 

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When she was about to finish read Tom Sawyer, we were in Iowa.  It seemed only appropriate to head south to Hannibal, Mo.  As she finished the last Chapter we puller into town.  As we approached Bostn we read about the Revolutionary war.  As we travel the AlCan highway she reads from a book called the milepost that provide information about parks, services and history along the way.
 

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To learn how to play folk songs we recommend buying a $4.00 harmonica and the book Harmonica Americana, by Jon Gindick.  Both are available at all Cracker Barrel resturants across America.  (Note: There are no Cracker Barrels in any states that touch the Pacific Ocean.)
 

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We do application math every chance we get.  It might be money problems, currency conversion in other countries, converting kilometers to miles or fahrenhite to celcius.

This year we started practicing algebra.  Now we have a set of flash card in the truck with problems like factoring and reducing:
 

x2 + 7x + 12 x2 + 2x - 3

or

[(x * 1/x)+x] * (x+2)

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Any one of these or other subjects can be discussed for many minutes.  The trick is to keep the kids interest.  Younger kids are usually more curiuos and fasinated by new things they see.  Older kids may not engage with as much curiosity, but still learn a lot from listening even if they act like it hurts.

Take powerlines for example.  you can talk about how the wire is made, where does the copper come from, how is the copper extracted from the rock.  Or the towers, made from steel, the structural design, why are they so large, how are they assembled.  The power itself, why is AC current used instead of DC current, how many volts are in the wires and whats the difference between volts amps and watts.  Where does the power come from, how is it made, or better yet how many different energy sources are converted into electric energy, how does each conversion work.  How does the power get to each house, how do they know how much to charge or bill us for power.
 

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While driving We talk about everything we possible can and Cheryl also reads science, chemisrty, astronomy and electronics books as we drive.

We bought a pocket sized handbook at an Ace Hardware in Sedona Arizona.  Using the hand book we explored that mass and density of elements and compounds, calculated truss loads, and designed a conveyor belt system with motor sizing to move enough gravel up twenty feet to fill ten dump trucks per hour.  We also use the trigonometry tables in the book to compute simply angular problems as we drive. I keep a calculator on the visor for them to use.

Our goal is to provide the boys with basic math, algebra and calculas skills and expose them to many of the science and engineering disciplines. that they will have a broad spectrum of practical information if they choose to persue a technical degree later on.
 

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Mile Marker - Keep score of who see the most freeway milepost signs first.  The first one to see the next marker shouts "mile marker.  keep score and the first one to twenty wins.  This is good for thirty or fourty miles.  "It's also a good chance to point out that at 60 mph it takes 60 seconds to travel one mile.

We also played an alphabet game.  The first person has to find something that starts with the letter "A."  The next "B", then "C" and so one.  Some letters like Q and X we allow a word on a sign.  We also play variations where the word has to be only a noun, or only an adjitive, or verb.  It can also be played where you see who can find the first item that starts with A, then who can be first with B, etc.  For some reason there is a lot of stuff in the car that makes the game too easy so we have a rule that the object can't be in or one the car we are in.

There's also various forms of finding licence plates from different states, and auto bingo just to name a few.
 

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We signed up for a daily buzzword on-line from http://www.wordcentral.com/buzzword-subscribe.html.  It provides the usage and history of the daily word.  We printed out a couple hundred of these daily buzzwords and review them as we drive.  Here is an example:
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What is the Daily Buzzword for September 4, 2002?    Adam's apple  \AD-umz-AP-ul\  (noun)

What does it mean?
  : the lump in the front of the neck formed by the largest cartilage of the larynx

How do you use it?
  "Thenardier resumed, pushing the rag that served him as a cravat up to the level of his Adam's apple, a gesture which completes the apable air of a serious man. . . ."  (Victor Hugo, _Les Miserables_)

Are you a word wiz?
  The "Adam's apple" is probably the only part of the human body that sounds like it was named after a piece of fruit. How do you think he Adam's apple got its name?

  A. A doctor named Adam thought it was shaped like an apple.
  B. It was named for a popular type of apple grown by Adam Smith.
  C. It comes from Spanish words that look like "Adam's apple" when written.
  D. There was a mix-up in translating the Hebrew words for "lump on a man."

Answer:
  It was a mistake in translation that gave us the word "Adam's apple." That term comes from the Hebrew "tappuah ha adham," meaning lump on a man." The confusion happened because the Hebrew word "tappuah" can mean either "lump" or "apple."  Similarly, "adham" can mean either "man" or "Adam." Someone made two bad guesses in translating the Hebrew phrase into Latin. When English speakers learned the term from New Latin, the incorrect translation was passed along to us, and we've called that neck lump an "Adam's apple" ever since.
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I think this one is fairly obvious.  We simply ask them to spell words as we drive.  The boys are naturally competative and love to see who can do better than the other.
 

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