5 Unique Ways to Spend Family Time

Here are 5 suggestions to make family time more creative, imaginative, and fun—and that will appeal to the kid in all of us.
1) Stage a Favorite Picture Book
Particularly for the preschooler and kindergartener set, acting out a treasured emotional story stimulates their creative mind and allows their heart to express tender feelings. Utilize dress-up props (hats, shoes, costumes, jewelry), animal characters, and you, the parent, can act as director and adoring audience members.

Picture books like BLOOM!: A Little Book About Finding Love written by Maria Van Lieshout, the story of a pig in love with an elusive butterfly entices children to dramatize the happy feelings of a crush, or the sadness of a broken heart. No wonder it’s a favorite staging piece in Oscar-winning actress Marcia Gay Harden’s household. Harden said the first time she read BLOOM! to her 4-year-old twins, Hudson and Julitta, they were entranced. “Hudson became the boy pig and Julitta was BLOOM, the girl pig.”

But fair warning, be prepared for children’s story acting to inspire surprising side effects. Harden joked, “Let’s hope my twins don’t seek a mud bath with flowers in it or perhaps, let’s hope they do! Exploring life…that’s the ticket!”

2) Show Kids How They Can Make a Difference in the World
What if, at the start of every week, you and your family did something together to make a positive difference? That’s the empowering concept behind the new book, Every Monday Matters by Matthew Emerzian and Kelly Bozza. EMM has 52 (a year’s worth of Mondays) suggestions, supported by motivational stats. Here are a few of our favorites:

1) Plant a Tree
One acre of trees produces enough oxygen for 18 people every day. Three trees planted strategically around a house can reduce energy use by up to 50%. One tree planted by every family would reduce 1 billion pounds of CO2 annually from our atmosphere.

2) Adopt a Pet
If your child is ready to help with the responsibility of a pet, visit your local animal shelter and help save an animal. With nearly 8 million dogs and cats are placed in shelters each year, there’s definitely a lovable pet waiting for you!

3) Create and Donate a Back-to-School Backpack
28 million children from low-income families enter school each fall. Children need school supplies to do their schoolwork and homework. Required school supplies can cost between $20 and $100. Help ease the financial burden of low-income families and increase a child’s confidence, self-esteem, and excitement about school with new school supplies. Call a local public elementary school and ask them to select a family for your gift.

3) Encourage Imaginative Storytelling
Trips to the library are always enriching, but try setting the books aside occasionally and making up stories as a family instead. You don’t have to be camping and roasting marshmallows to sit in a circle and weave a good tale. Did you know that young children who play imaginary games or listen to lots of tales spun by parents have better vocabularies than their peers? Casting your child as the hero character in your stories is a great way to ensure a captive audience. If you’re intimidated by original storytelling, buy a copy of Storytelling With Children by Nancy Mellon. Mellon’s book has plenty of ideas to help every parent become a confident, creative storyteller.

A study at Case Western Reserve University found that young children who were creative become adept problem solvers. When these imaginative children were tested later in life, they were more resourceful in coping with challenges and difficult situations.

4) Plan a Monthly Block Party
Think you must live in Middle America to organize a block party with your neighbors? Think again. Even if you don’t know your neighbors yet, isn’t it time you did? Get the kids involved creating invitations and delivering them. With a simple potluck party, you create community camaraderie and a neighborly trade of good food and fun. Who knows, your kids may meet their next best friend or you could discover a reliable teenager, eager for a babysitting job that lives only yards away! When planning your neighborhood gathering, toss party ideas around with everyone on the block. See what gets the kids and the adults excited. What about a progressive dinner up and down the block? One house does an appetizer course, next house salad, next house soup, main course, and dessert. And you’re setting a fine example for the little ones too, showing kids that life isn’t about keeping up with the folks next door, but rather, life is a party for all!

5) It’s Family Game Night!
In her book, The Creative Family: How to Encourage Imagination and Nurture Family Connections, Amanda Blake Soule urges families to imagine a time before computer games, television shows, or even radio. To remember when families gathered after dinner for entertainment and played games together, rather than seeking isolated, individual time in front of electronics. Boule lists several creative, traditional parlor games. Here are a couple of samples:

1) WHATEVER YOU DO, DON’T SMILE!
Everyone gathers in one room, and the person who is “it” walks from person to person saying, “Whatever you do, don’t smile!” to which the recipient replies, “Whatever I do, I won’t smile!” without a smile, hopefully. The “it’ person than moves on to the next person until they get a smile from someone, who then becomes “it.” Children have a marvelous time going from person to person, making ridiculous faces, motions, and voices, hoping to get the other family members smiling and laughing.

2) IMPROV IN A BAG.
Try a twist on charades—keep a bag of props full of random bits and objects like fabrics, kitchen items, tools, small accessories, etc.. One or two players choose an object and have 30 seconds to come up with a short skit based on the object they have. Improv ensues, followed closely by comedy.