Our family dinner table conversation tradition started as soon as M and M could talk. A really, really long time ago I was listening to a radio station and the DJ talked about a dinner conversation ritual he did with his family. He called it “Best and Worst”. Now when I say really long ago, I am not kidding. It was before kids, maybe even before hubs. The idea really stuck with me as you can see!
It’s easy. We start with one person. Little M usually directs the order… because she likes directing. The first person starts off by saying what the best part of their day was. Then they say what the worst part of their day was. Then the next person does the same. It goes around the table until everyone has had a turn.
The Importance of Family Dinner Table Conversation
- It gives us something to talk about. Often times someone’s response will lead to a pretty long dinner conversation.
- It encourages the kids to think about the events of the day.
- It’s the perfect place for us adults to show that we have good and not so good points in our day.
- If we can keep this routine going it will be a wonderful way to stay connected once the kids get older.
Update: We have been doing “best and worst” for so long that sometimes we like to mix it up. Creative with Kids shares the best conversation starters. When she asked me to create a few I jumped at the chance! Check out my Getting to Know Your Kids Conversation Starters.
Do you have any dinner conversation routines?
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I have been following your blog for only a short time but I am super impressed! I have a 2 year old that I am considering homeschooling and would like to get organized. You seem to have it together in the organization department and also the amazingly creative, fun activities you do with your kids. Before my daughter I trained to be a Montessori teacher, completed the program and interned for a year but never had my own classroom. How do you organize your days, do you just come up with activities on the spot and then blog about them or do you plan ahead, I would love some advice! My training really comes in handy when it comes to putting together lessons but some days it feels weird to have a “schedule of activities” at home instead of letting life just flow, how do you balance that?
Thanks for any info!
April
Keep an eye out for Wednesday’s post… I’ll answer this fantastic question on Whatever Wednesday!
We do this but we call it diamond and rock. When the kids have a bad day my hubs and always says – some days are diamonds some days are rocks. So we changed it from best and worst to diamonds and rocks. We also added question. Each person asks another person a question. They can pick the person and the question they want to ask. We are hoping this teaches the kids to be interested in other people and not focus on themselves.
I love the idea of diamond and rock. Adding a question is a wonderful way to expand on the routine… we just might add it in tonight.
Great post. We do the best/worst conversation. Love the idea of encouraging the children to ask a question of someone else.