How to Plan a Jurassic Themed Road Trip
This is the summer of the dinosaurs! Our family has been playing two different Jurassic World video games and planning our trip to a dinosaur museum. The kids talk about being a herbivore or a carnivore depending on what food they’re eating at the moment. We’ve read books, pretended we were dinosaurs, talked about paleontology, and discussed the traits of each species.
With the latest Jurassic World movie in theaters, this is the year for a dinosaur themed road trip! By planning out some fun foods, books, toys, costumes, music, audiobooks, movies, activities, and games with a dinosaur theme, you can easily create an amazing and memorable party on wheels for your family. Here are a bunch of ideas to get you started.
Food
Making sure your carnivores, herbivores, and sweetivores are well-fed can keep them from turning hostile. Party foods can be everything from normal foods with a new name (cherry tomatoes are now Stegosaurus treats) to foods shaped like dinosaurs (cut out cookies). I can often get my kids to try new things by making food fun.
Like everything on this themed road trip, you can do as much or as little as you want. If a party on wheels intimidates you, then focus on just one meal or a few snacks (for example, Scooby graham cracker snacks can be called dino bones). Your family will be happy with whatever you do.
- Dinosaur Bones
- Footprint Fossil Cookies
- Dino Lunch
- Raptor Punch
- Rice Crispy Eggs
- Skeleton Cookies
- Dinosaur Eggs
Activities
A bored dinosaur is a dangerous dinosaur. Keep your little dinos happy with these easy activities.
- Counting Spikes
- Small World in an Altoid Tin
- Ice Surprise Eggs
- Preschool Learning Pack
- Catch a Dinosaur Jar
- Paleontology Cards
- 100 Dinosaur Books
Awesome Jurassic Park Toys
There are some amazing Jurassic World toys on the shelves this summer. We like to do one new toy a day on our longer road trips with a few smaller surprises thrown in randomly.
If your kids love blind bags, buy a party pack of toys and wrap them individually in tin foil.
Learning at Home
I’m a homeschool mom who tries to sneak in learning opportunities whenever possible. Here are a few ways to extend your kids’ interest in dinosaurs.
- Writing Tray
- Letter Matching Game
- Play Dough Counting Mat
- Amber Slime
- Dinosaur Skulls Matching Cards
- Pretend Paleontology
- DIY Fossils
Media
We don’t use screens during our road trips since I prefer the kids to be interacting with each other and their environment.
However, we do enjoy sharing an audiobook or some music. With a Jurassic World road trip, the most obvious choice is music, books, movies, audiobooks, etc, from the Jurassic Park series. Of course, parents must decide for their own family if the media is appropriate for their children’s ages.
I also included some of my children’s favorite dinosaur books.
- Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom Soundtrack
- Jurassic Park Movies
- Jurassic Park Book/Audiobook
- Life Size Dinosaurs Book
- Dinosaur Encyclopedias for Kids
- Dinosaur Sounds Book
- Who Cleans the Dinosaur Bones
- You Can be a Paleontologist
There’s a lot more that could be added to this list. Costumes? Decorations? Games?
Comment below on your favorites and let us know if you take a Jurassic themed road trip this summer.
