We had our family night on Monday this time because Greg took some neighbors to the airport on Sunday night.
This week we had story time and popcorn! Each of us selected a book to be read, plus Isaac and Moriah each selected an extra book to read aloud to the rest of us. It was neat seeing which book each person chose, and we really did have fun reading together. I also like giving the older two kids a chance to read aloud for practice. Isaac is a very good reader anyway, but I’d like to give him more opportunities to read aloud to his sisters. Moriah is a beginning reader and doing very well, and I think it boosted her confidence to get to read aloud to the family. This was her first time reading aloud to all of us, and she was thrilled to do it!
Here are the books we read:
Greg chose There’s a Wocket in My Pocket (Dr. Seuss) to read, while I chose Good Work, Amelia Bedelia (Peggy Parish). Isaac chose Handa’s Surprise (Eileen Browne) for me to read aloud, and he chose The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog! (Mo Willems) to read aloud himself. We’re big fans of The Pigeon books because they’re so funny! Moriah chose Bad Kitty (Nick Bruel), which is another very funny book. I read that one aloud. Moriah also chose Biscuit (Alyssa Satin Capucilli) to read aloud herself. Gabriela chose Pancakes for Breakfast (Tomie dePaola), which is actually a wordless book. Greg “read” that one, making up the story to match the pictures. The kids love to read and to be read to. We used to read them a story every night before bed, but we haven’t done that in awhile. We must get back into that routine!
I’m very happy that we’ve done so well remembering to have a family night every week. It’s fun trying to come up with different activities that we all can enjoy together. In the past we’ve tried popcorn and a movie for family night, and to be honest, I don’t think watching a movie is the best idea. I remember back (ages ago) when I was dating, I once heard someone say that going to the movies for a date was not a good idea because you don’t talk during a movie, and as a result you don’t get to know the person as well. It’s the same for family time. You may all enjoy the movie, but you’re not having conversation. I think the best family nights are ones where you do an activity that allows you the freedom just to talk to each other…as a family. That’s how you grow in your relationships anyway! Sometimes our family activity has been only 30 minutes, but that’s 30 minutes of talking, giggling, and sharing. Even though we do things together throughout the week (like homeschool) and also talk to each other a lot, we look forward to family night because it’s a time set aside just to have fun together.
Family devotions is another thing we once tried to get started (but failed). We do say prayers together every night and also when a need arises, and I do teach the kids Bible in school, but I’d love to incorporate some more spiritual activities into our family nights, whether it’s something brief in addition to the regular activity, or whether it’s THE activity of the night. Any ideas?
Have you seen "Little Pilgrim's Progress" by Helen Taylor? It is, as it sounds, a child's version of "Pilgrim's Progress". It is suitable for reading aloud perhaps a chapter a week and perhaps doing a plan of where Little Christian has reached. My church uses this for the little ones, from 3 to 6, during the morning service.
ReplyDeleteWe have read the Jim Cromarty life of John Paton to our children. We thought this was a success until we found the child, who was youngest at the time, playing cannibals.
It's funny you should mention Little Pilgrim's Progress. I have the book, and we had started reading it aloud a few years ago but stopped for some reason. I like your idea of mapping out where Little Christian has reached. Maybe I ought to try that again. The chapters are short but with plenty of discussion material. I haven't heard of the 2 men you mentioned. Was John Paton a missionary?
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