Children's games on the road.

When our grandkids were about that age I made up some scorecards (actually just printed pages) with names like McDonald's, Dairy Queen, Walmart, Exxon station, train, red semi, etc. About 10 total things and they would put a mark by one each time they saw one. Kept them busy trying to get more "points" than the others at zero costs to me. No games, cards, or pieces to keep up with.

car bingo - you can get the boards on Amazon, ebay, etc.

music - make mix tapes (mp3 playlists) of your favorite classics, their favorites, etc. At that age, they are usually happy to listen to anything that can be easily sung along with. Try Arrogant Worms - they are very popular with that age group and much of their stuff is actually entertaining for adults too.

planning - bring guide books, sightseeing maps, etc., and have them plan out the next days' events. Camping cookbooks - let them plan meals and help with on-the-road grocery shopping.

digital cameras - they can review the events of the prior day via the camera while driving down the road to the next memory making spot. Set up contests with them (e.g., take a photo of wood - the most creative shot wins) and the winner gets to pick a restaurant or a sightseeing stop, etc.

story telling - make up stories, pick up books on local ghost stories at various stops (California coastline has lots of those), books on short stories about the area, etc. (example, Journey to the Brink of Doom by T.W. Kriner for tales of Niagara Falls and folks who went over). Have some on a kindle, but check for local printed works at various stops.

With my nieces, the one thing I learned was to be silly with them. Give in to your inner child and let it lead you with the kids - they'll love seeing Grandma and Grandpa getting silly, singing funny songs, etc.

down home wrote:
Been a long time since our kids were small.
Shortly, we will be taking the step Grand Kids with us, on trips.
What are some of gamesand distractions or things to do,for 8yr old girl and 7 year old boy, while going down the hwy?
I prefer to keep them away from computer screens if we can

Well there is the license game but many of today's kiddos are somewhat jaded what with living in a mobile society and aren't quite as interested. You could add on another aspect of the game and ask them to name the state capitol, region location or a city within the license plate's boundaries.
As well the alphabet game is fun even if we have less billboards than in the past.
Simple card games such as "Crazy Eights" and "Old Maid" can be played in the back seat or w/i some RVs.
Magnetic mini game boards. You can find the classics such as "Scrabble, checkers and chess.
Singalong with the radio.

Although not a major fan of computer and electronic games I finally decided to accept reality and find the advantages that an electronic life can bring. Bought DGD a Kindle Paperwhite last year. It's really been a boon to her summer reading list and no RL books to get wet or misplaced. We can access math problems online that I tailor to her last year's and forthcoming work. Kind of fun to figure out how many miles between exits; overall miles we have traveled and the average of same for instance.
I've found the parental control settings to be a boon for overall usage.

HTH.