Birthdays, holidays, vacations, and big parties are very important to families and people usually get a lot of feelings from them. However, experts in families and how they work say the little things we do all the time as a family probably have a much bigger effect on kids over the years. Bedtime stories, Friday…
You’ll probably find your kids push boundaries, even after you’ve told them the rules, and told them again. It can seem like they’re doing it on purpose or trying to be difficult, particularly if they do it a lot. But those who study how children grow usually say it’s completely typical and something to anticipate….
We tend to find family traditions important because we do them again and again, but simply doing things over and over isn’t the whole story. Traditions are often at their best when kids aren’t just at them, but are actually a part of making them happen. For example, a child who picks the sprinkles for…
We usually plan things to do with the family because they are stimulating, full of fun, or just to occupy everyone, but kids can get a lot out of doing things together that are more restful. At home with lots going on, it’s easy for the school day, shopping, screen time and going to bed…
Families tend to load a lot of feeling onto important occasions. We often think of holidays, vacations, birthday parties, and special plans as the things our kids will remember forever. And while these things are good, experts on family relationships say that doing something over and over actually builds a different type of value. A…
Meaningful family traditions don’t have to be grand displays or cost a lot of money, or even be meticulously planned. When children look back, they usually remember the things the family did over and over, and that just felt like how things always were. Experts on families say that doing things repeatedly like this helps…
Kids can really get something from family traditions that happen with the seasons, and they become important to how families are. These traditions are a way for children to really see how time passes, how things change, and where they fit into the family. A picnic in the spring, a stroll in the summer as…
Adults frequently assume very young children get the idea of taking turns fairly quickly, but it’s a skill that comes along slowly; many families don’t understand that. When kids are little, being able to wait, share, or allow another child to be in charge of something isn’t just about them wanting to be nice. They…
We frequently hope for a lot of quality family time during the weekend, yet these times can easily get overly scheduled, surprisingly costly, or tricky to arrange. For a lot of families, the best things you do together aren’t necessarily the biggest or most spectacular, but are those which get everyone focusing on the same…
People usually think of family traditions as being for holidays or big events, but experts in how children grow say they’re really much wider in scope. Little things that you do over and over, for example, pizza on Friday, a walk during the weekend, a special breakfast for birthdays, or a story at bedtime, are…