And, writes Dorothy Rich in her book, MegaSkills, these trips can be a way to help motivate your child.

Choose a place your child wants to go: the library, a movie theater, or the mall. Gather bus route maps and schedules. (Call the transportation company.) Let your children use the schedules to figure out:

What transportation is available

How much time it will take

How much it will cost.

Then it's time for the test. Let your child take the trip alone or with the entire family.

And, writes Rich, "One of the fastest ways to have youngsters appreciate the services of the family car is to let them take public transportation."

Activity idea used with permission. From MegaSkills by Dorothy Rich. Published by Houghton Mifflin, Boston, 1988.

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