Heading out on the road to visit family? Don’t leave without reading these great suggestions for keeping kids ages 6 to 10 entertained in a creative way as you travel far.

If you’re staying at home for the Thanksgiving break, you’ll find lots of fun family events around the Triangle as well as nearby holiday destinations for day-trips in CarolinaParent.com's Turkey Day Guide.

Celebrate the season by heading out for holiday ice skating at the Triangle’s shopping centers to benefit the Raleigh Rescue Mission. Or enjoy An Evening With Mark Twain in Hillsborough. The one-man play Nov. 27-28 takes you back to the late 1800s and early 1900s, when Mark Twain was living, and is designed to keep you laughing as you get to know him. In Durham, The Life & Science Museum Holiday Springs and Sprockets exhibit features five mechanical, holiday-themed sculptures by artist Steve Gerberich which present scientific principles. Look for Santa’s flying reindeer and a 17-foot holiday train locomotive powered by old coffee grounds.

You can also take in a kid-friendly traveling exhibit or performance. Choose from Cirque Dreams Holidaze, whose acrobats, aerialists, singers and dancers perform astonishing feats; The Adventures of Mr. Potato Head, an interactive exhibit designed to teach at Marbles Kids Museum; and Knights of the Black Flag, an interactive exhibit that explores the legacy of pirates from ancient to modern times.

Looking ahead to December, check out the wonderful array of tree lightings and Santa sightings in Triangle towns, from Apex to Zebulon.