Family Fun Activities
With preschoolers...
- Write a book: Record and illustrate stories and/or poems which spring from their play and imagination
- Create a gallery: Choose a family member of the month and have everybody else paint a picture and tell a story which affirms that person (display in hallway or person's room or put in a scrapbook)
- Plant a garden (even one seed) and help it grow
- Conflict resolution/problem solving: Use puppets to talk out conflicts between siblings, parents
- Teach how to chop, stir, pour, and flip and cook together
- Learn songs and poems to sing and repeat together
- Introduce simple chores (bringing in groceries, cleaning up making a peanut butter sandwich, selecting wardrobe, etc.)
- Provide a calm voice, hug, and teach feeling-words when they are distressed over events or relationships
- Help child make decisions about everyday choices (food, clothing, play, room arrangements)
With school-age children...
- Introduce board games for problem-solving and social skills
- Read stories aloud instead of watching TV
- Teach telephone and door-greeting etiquette
- Help your child organize his./her study schedule
- Invite the child to plan and prepare menu items, using the time to teach good nutrition
- Allow the child to earn, count, save, and spend money
- Introduce a variety of recreational and skill activities (Scouts, music, sports, school projects) and resource people to work with a child
- Teach outdoor skills such as pitching a tent, making a campfire, or using a compass
- Help child and peers/siblings brainstorm non-violent solutions to their conflicts
- Create a family banner which recognizes historical and personal experiences, values, interests
- Visit museums, galleries, exhibits, natural wonders
With teens...
- Help adolescent find a volunteer activity helping others that where he/she can enjoy, take leadership, be creative, get to know/help others
- Role play assertiveness skills to avert peer pressure, adult exploitation and abuse
- Debate public and private issues from a variety of viewpoints
- Support independent learning experiences such as history fair, 4-H projects, science camps, foreign exchange
- Pass on a family heirloom to a teen, with its history and meaning
- Use a teen's critical thinking skills to gather information and make decisions on major purchases (car, house, computer) and activities (vacation destinations, recreational choices)
- Surf the Internet with your teen
- Encourage mentoring relationships with caring/competent teachers, youth leaders, career leaders
- Discuss characters, decisions, outcomes, etc. in TV shows, popular films and songs
- Work out a mutually-agreeable schedule that balances school/work/ and home time, friend and family priorities
