How to Nurture a Heart for Learning in Your Child – Conversation Skills

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Dinner conversation is not only the perfect time to connect, it is also a great time to do a little unintentional (yet intentional) learning with your preschooler.

Studies unmistakably show that kids who eat dinner with their families are better for it in so many ways.Web MD states the following eleven benefits for children who eat family dinners:

• Everyone eats healthier meals.
• Kids are less likely to become overweight or obese.
• Kids more likely to stay away from cigarettes.
• They’re less likely to drink alcohol.
• They won’t likely try marijuana.
• They’re less likely to use illicit drugs.
• School grades will be better.
• You and your kids will talk more.
• You’ll be more likely to hear about a serious problem.
• Kids will feel like you’re proud of them.
• There will be less stress and tension in the home.

With these kinds of benefits, we should all strive to eat dinner together as often as possible. But, dinner is also a great time to connect with your kids in some engaging and exploratory conversation. We call this exercise “best-worst, happy-sad.” I’m sure you can imagine pretty much what this means.

Each person simply shares the best and worst part of their day as well as something that made them happy and something that made them sad. Not only is this just a great way to connect, but when your preschooler participates they are implementing reflective thinking, deciphering feelings, and communicating their thoughts in an expressive way.

It’s so amazing to really identify the things your preschooler is learning as you go about your daily activities. This becomes even more apparent with subsequent children. My younger kids pick up so much in thinking and reasoning skills, verbal and communication skills, and in their overall understanding of the world around them just because our house is always bustling with activity.

Having some intentional conversation around the dinner table is not only a great way to get to know more about your child, but it is a great way to teach your children of all ages some invaluable skills at the same time.

*You can read the full article from WebMD here.