{Tuesday's Tip} How Family Dinner Helps Your Child's Language

Dinners are important in our homes.  First of all, if we are sitting around a table, we can see each other.  This is important to the socialization of families.  Sitting face to face, looking at each other, observing facial expressions and body language.  This is all part of our social experience.  Socializing at the dinner table can help us not only to feel more connected as a family but these face to face interactions can help our children learn so many social and language skills while at the dinner table. This Tuesday's Tip is all about sharing ways of...

Here are some that I've noticed with my own kids: 

{1} Children learn to follow simple directions.  "Please pass the carrots."  "Put a napkin at each person's plate."  "Put the milk, butter, and jam on the table."

{2} Simple directions also teach our children prepositions.  "Push the chair under the table." "Put the cup above the plate."  "Place the water in the center of the table." "Put the napkin on the plate."

{3} Children learn manners.  Waiting, taking turns, saying "please," "thank you," and "may I be excused."  We don't say, "yuck, I hate that," instead we say, "no, thank you."

{4} Ask your children open-ended questions.  "What did you do at recess today?"  "What was your favorite thing you did today?"  They have to figure out a response and become independent thinkers.

{5} Children can ask us questions.  "How do carrots grow?"  "What is this?"  "What are we doing after dinner?"  Children are curious and want to learn and be included.  Dinner is a great time to teach them.

{6} Little ones who are not yet verbal hear others speaking.  They recognize familiar words and learn new ones. They also watch how we interact with one another and learn how we treat each other.  They learn that there is waiting before the next person speaks.  It is amazing all the things that our little ones learn simply by observing!

{7} Families build connections and relationships at the dinner table which are so essential for trust.  Language is more fluid and natural when we feel we are in a safe place. These connections and trust can grow with the child no matter how old they are.

{8} Dinners can be a time to relax and enjoy.  Children don't feel drilled or that they need to perform.  This aids in more language and learning because when you aren't stressed about teaching,  it often happens naturally.

{9} Using idea's from this blog can make dinners fun, different, and enjoyable. :) A change in pace or trying new things at family dinner time may trigger more conversation with your children because you have them focused and engaged.  Maybe you will discover a new interest. 

{10} Children love routines. Yes, it's good to change things up to challenge our children, to find things that interest our children.  But, routine is also very important.  Young children thrive on routine.  They thrive on understanding what happens next. This helps them feel safe and comfortable, which allows them to relax and talk.  Ways to do this include: have dinner at the same time everyday, give your children the same dinner time chores, have your children do the same activities right before and after dinner (like finish homework before and take a bath after), etc. 

{11} Problem solving skills that are important to language can be learned at dinner time.  Children are learning how to scoop, eat with utensil, drink from a cup, try new foods, cut with a knife, etc.

These are just some of the reasons why it is important to try and have regular family dinners together. If our children are in front of a TV or playing video games, they will miss out on ALL of these social and language benefits. If we are always texting, making phone calls, using Facebook, or are just to busy, we will also miss out. Sure, there are times when life is so busy that it's all we can do to pass the happy meals back over the seat so the kids can eat before the next activity. (Been there done that!) But even in those moments, are there ways we can still take a minute to engage our children and help them learn these essential skills?

Kids with better language will do better in school because they will understand more of what the teacher is telling them.  They learn language by there interactions with us.  It does not cost anything to talk to our children.  IT IS FREE!  We just need to invest the time.

{10 Days of Halloween} Spooky Story Dinner

Today it is October 22nd--exactly 10 days until it is Halloween (including today). That means this is day one in our mini series...10 Days of Halloween!  In the next 10 days we will be sharing fun and simple ways you and your family can celebrate Halloween. We will be including simple activities, dinners, crafts, and recipes--a little of everything to savor this spooky time of year. Happy Haunting!

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To get into the Halloween spirit at my house I decided to have a spooky story dinner.

We took a little trip to the library and found LOTS of fun and spooky kids books available. 

As we sat down to eat dinner, I turned off the lights and lit two candles at the table.  The candle light was bright even to read by and really added to the scary atmosphere.  I read some of the scary stories we checked out from the library as we ate together.  What an easy way to celebrate Halloween!

"Brain Quest" Dinner Game

I bought these brain quest cards for my kids.  There are like a thousand questions on them and it's a great way to learn new facts.  So I decided test all of our brain smarts by having a Brain Quest Dinner Game.

We took turns asking each other questions.  The person asking got to pick which question to ask (each card has several questions to choose from).  The guessers raced to be the first one to answer the question correctly.  The guessers had to raise their hands, so whoever raised their hand first got to try answering the question first.  If the guesser got the answer right, he/she received a point.  The person with the most points at the end of dinner got to pick the family activity we did together after dinner.

 

We actually had a lot fun asking each other questions from these cards during dinner--it was a simpe, fun family competition!  Brain Quest cards are available for all different grade levels, so you can even get your younger children involved.

To make this dinner even more fun, give everyone a special invitation before hand!

{Click here to print your own Brain Quest dinner invite}

Silent Dinner

{ASL signs--sea turtle & "I Love You"}

How does it feel not to hear?  If any of you or a love done have experienced hearing loss, then you know that it can be a real challenge.  This is what our dinner was about last night--we had a "silent" dinner.

During dinner no one was allowed to speak out loud, instead everyone had to communicate using sign language and gestures.  However, to make sure that we didn't just sit in silence, I created a few dinner rules for our silent dinner:

1. You are required to communicate during dinner!

2.  You can use signs or gestures

3.  NO SPEAKING WITH LIPS

I left these rules out on the table to help remind everyone while we ate dinner.  I also gave each person a paper with some sign language on it, including the ASL alphabet. 

{ASL alphabet}

Our silent dinner was actually really challenging!  We spent a long time spelling out words and made up most of our own gestures.  It was a good learning experience to be in someone else's shoes for a few minutes. 

There are plenty of You Tube videos, apps, websites, and books devoted to teaching ASL (American Sign Language).  You could easily include a sign language video or book to help everyone learn more during or after dinner.

Lemonade In A Bag

Adding a little variety to your dinnertime meal doesn't need to be difficult.


This idea is very simple and delicious! Here's what you'll need:

Lemonade Supplies
lemons
sugar
water
ziplock bags

Place a lemon and ziplock bag on everyone's plate before dinner.  Also set out some sugar and water on the dinner table.

Cut your lemon in fourths and place 1/4 in the ziplock bag.  Seal the bag and squish the lemon until you get all the juice out.  This is the fun part, you're kids will love it--even those that are more sensitive to textures because they are able to participate and feel the textures without getting messy.

When you have squeezed out all the juice from the lemon slice, add the same amount of water as you have lemon juice and add sugar to taste.  You can either add a straw and sip your lemonade straight from the bag or pour your lemonade into a cup.  Either way the lemonade is fresh and delicious and is perfect for any summer or fall dinner.

What a great refreshing summer treat! 

Rapunzel Mystery Dinner: Tangled Web We Weave

This is a very simplified version of the mystery dinners you can buy, and my kids all loved it!  To do a mystery dinner with kids, they just need something simple and straight forward with a few mysteries and puzzles to figure out.

Here's how I created our own Rapunzel Mystery Dinner.

{Invitation} Give everyone an invitation with an assigned role of who they will be at dinner that night (like the maid, queen, king, princess, prince, butler, etc.).  Leave the invitation in a place where each person will find it.  I put the invitations in plain sight on everyone's beds.  The invitation should also include the date and time of the dinner and any other mystery dinner instructions (like if they should dress-up, etc.).

{Click here to print your own Mystery Dinner invitations.}

{Rapunzel Mystery Plot} The princess, Rapunzel, has been taken from the castle.  She needs to be found....HURRY!! 

{To start it off} Just before dinner a "mysterious" person rings the door bell and leaves a clue.  The kids run to the door to answer it and find the clue on the door step.  Everyone gathers around to read the clue together.

                  {Clue #1} If you ever want to see your Rapunzel again, you will need to do something for me first!  To find the next clue go to the Snuggly Duckling.
    Signed, Lady Gothel

{The Snuggly Duckling}

{Sunggly Duckling} Before you start the mystery, hang a sign for the Snuggly Duckling in the dining area and decorate it like the thieves hideout.  After reading the first clue, go to the "Snuggly Duckling" (or the dining room).  Everyone's dinner should be served and ready to eat.  Sit down and start eating dinner together.  In the center of the table there is a yellow flower (real or fake) with another clue next to it, only slightly hidden so that the kids will find it while eating dinner.  Read the clue #2 together.
         
                {Clue  #2} Bring me back what once was mine!  It must go back to where it came from.  When you return it, you will find the third clue.

But first you must sing the healing song like an opera singer:

"Flower gleam and glow
Let your power shine
Let the clock reverse
Bring back what once was mine
What once was mine."

Once you do this, I will begin to feel stronger. Now go and follow ALL of the instructions!
Signed, Lady Gothel

{Clue #2 & flower garden puzzle}

{Healing Song} Follow the instructions and sing the healing song in opera-style.  This is sure to include a lot of giggling and silliness if your family is like mine!

      {Puzzle} Along with clue #2, include a puzzle of where you need to return the flower.  I took a picture of our flower garden and then cut into puzzle pieces.  Put the puzzle pieces back together to learn where Rapunzel's flower (sitting in the middle of the table) needs to be returned to.

* To add more "mystery," have the power go out and finish eating dinner by lantern light.  Also, it is fun to include magnifying glasses, flashlights, etc. so that everyone can feel like they are doing real detective work while figuring out where the princess could be and what to do with clue #2.

{Flower garden} When you finish with dinner, remember that part of the clue was to,  "Bring back what once was mine."  Take the yellow flower from the table and plant it in the flower garden.  Then look for clue #3 and read it together.

{Clue #3} This is where you will find your Rapunzel!
Signed, Lady Gothel

{Clue #3 & close-up picture puzzles}

{Close-up Pictures} With clue #3, include two different close-up pictures of where Rapunzel is hiding.

{Rapunzel's tower}

We have a swing set, so I decorated it to look like "Rapunzel's tower" with a few vines and flowers and took close-up pictures of that.  The kids have to figure out what location the pictures are from and then go there to look for Rapunzel.

{Find Rapunzel} When the kids have figured out the close-up pictures, that is where they need to go to find Rapunzel.  You can use a doll to represent Rapunzel, or print a coloring page from Tangled.

If you use a swing set, have the kids climb the ladder to find the Princess Rapunzel.  Once they have found Rapunzel they need to hurry to safety (by sliding down the slide) and carrying the princess all the way back to the "castle" (or the house).  

{Celebration} Now that the princess has been safely returned home, you can all celebrate by sharing a yummy dessert together! :)

You may also want to end the night by watching a movie together, like Tangled, of course!

* If you decide to host your own Rapunzel Mystery Dinner, please leave a comment and let us know!! We would love your feedback and to hear your own great ideas. Also, we recently added the invitation as a printable. If there is anything else we can include that would make this activity easier for you, please let us know!

Wacky Wednesday Dinner Night

Sometimes I feel like my family can be so silly.  So they inspired me to have a "Wacky Wednesday" night at dinner time.

On Wednesday morning I gave everyone an invitation to our Wacky Wednesday Dinner Night.  On the invite it specified some of the dinner details.

{Click here to print your own Wacky Wednesday Dinner Night invitations}
The day, time, and place are left blank for you to fill in.

On the invitation it specified to wear "wacky" clothes.  For example, wearing mismatched socks, backwards pants, inside-out shirt, one pant leg rolled up high and the other down, multiple layers, mixing clothing styles, etc.  Everyone came up with their own wacky ensembles then came to dinner.

We each took turns modeling and presenting our wacky outfits.

Some were pretty funny!

Then we read a Dr. Suess classic called Wacky Wednesday.  It's a quick read, so we read it before dinner. 

At dinner, I wanted to make things "wacky" so I set the table by putting things in weird places.  Some things were upside down (including the pictures on the walls) and some were in odd containers (like the blender for holding sugar and the Halloween bowl for the casserole).

I hung a few items from the ceiling and light fixture that weren't normally hanging there and used different objects as our seats instead of our regular kitchen chairs (like an exercise ball).

I also added some unusual silverware to the place settings (like using a measuring cup instead of regular drinking glass).

All this wackiness made for lots of laughing during dinner time.  My kids loved discovering all of the wacky things I had set at the table and we all had fun trying to eat dinner in such a wacky way!

Nerf Birthday Party

Last month was my husband's birthday and I wanted to throw a party that would be active, simple, and fun for the whole family.  We ended up having...a Nerf Birthday Party!

The inspiration for this party came from The Dating Divas blog (they have lots of awesome date ideas).  When I saw it I knew it would make a great birthday theme for my husband's party!

The only supplies I purchased for the party were 4 Nerf guns, so everyone could have their own.

We started off the party with BBQ steak and veggies for dinner. 

For the table setting I used a yellow table cloth and placed a Nerf gun at everyone's place setting.  I also had a few snacks to go along with dinner as well.  I guess it was not all healthy.  ;)

 After dinner we each did a little target practice.  

I had a bulls-eye and stacked blocks all set up as our own little shooting range.  

After we had all practiced our shooting skills...we had a big Free-For-All!  We did not keep points or track how many times someone was hit.  We just had fun "shooting" at each other and running and hiding.

It turned out to be a fun, simple, active birthday party!!

* If you decide to host your own Nerf Birthday Party, please leave us comment and tell what you did! We'd love to hear your own creative Nerf ideas!

Mommy-Daughter Trip to Scotland

My daughter has really been wanting to see the new movie Brave.  So I thought it would be a perfect activity for our Mom-Daughter Date.  But, instead of just going to the movie, I planned a "trip to Scotland" to make our day more memorable.  Since the movie takes place in Scotland and all the previews show the main character (Princess Merida) doing archery, that's what I planned our activity around.

First, we had to fly to Scotland.  I set up our living room to look like an airplane by simply arranging my daughter's stuffed animals as the pilot, flight attendants, and other passengers.  Then I printed off our tickets to Scotland and we boarded the plane headed to Scotland!

While on the plane we watched some You Tube videos of Scottish musicians and dancers and snacked on peanuts, fruit snacks, and a cup of water.  

When our plane landed in Scotland our first activity was to make our own Scottish plaid table cloth.  I had a large piece of butcher paper and we made a plaid pattern by drawing lines across and down.  Drawing the plaid pattern was also a good practice in following color patterns too.  

When the table cloth was done we set the table for a Scottish lunch.  We had traditional UK fish and chips served cabbage (or coleslaw), berries, and biscuits and mugs of cream soda.

I also hung the Scotland flag in the dining room to make it more authentic (and because the Scotland flag is so simple to make).

After lunch we did our second activity -- archery!  We made these cute bow and arrows with popsicle sticks, floss, and Q-tips.  I found the tutorial from the blog The Brooding Hen.  

The tiny bow and arrows shot really well and we had a lot of fun practicing our archery skills.

 I made a LARGE bullseye so we would be sure to hit it. ;)

Finally we ended our day in Scotland by going to the movie Brave.  Now my daughter and I are world travelers, can't wait for our next adventure

Jokes On You!

Today we went on a family outing to the library.  For fun reading, I had everyone find a joke book they wanted to checkout.  The kids laughed and laughed as they read through their books -- they thought the jokes were so silly!

 

So when it was dinner time, I allowed everyone to bring their joke books to the table.  While we ate dinner we took turns telling some of our favorite jokes from the books. It brought a lot of laughter to the dinner table that night!

This was a simple activity that turned out to be way more fun and entertaining than I anticipated!  Plus it was and easy, free dinner activity that made everyone smile -- ya can't beat that!!

Secret Dinner

Have you ever heard of a "secret dinner?"  It's loads of fun! Here's the basic idea: Cook dinner like normal and prepare a simple menu for your family to "order" from.  But the secret is...your family does not know what they are really ordering because you changed the names!  It's a fun way to mix-up your regular dinner night and great for parties too.

For our secret dinner, I set up a small table in the living room to look like a small restaurant so that no one could see what I was preparing or serving from the kitchen.  (You could also set up your restaurant outside on the patio instead of in the living room.)  Then my daughter contributed by making a sign for the restaurant which we named Restaurant Rumbly Diner.

{Our restaurant sign & decor courtesy of my daughter}

For our dinner menu, I made: lasagna, french bread, cooked broccoli, mixed fruit, and brownies and ice cream for dessert.

To disguise the dinner items on the menu, I used objects and activities that remind me of summertime.  (You could easily choose a different theme to disguise your menu items.)  I also included silverware, napkins, and beverage as menu items to make things a little more interesting when everyone ordered.

Here was our menu:

Summer Sunshine-----Lemonade

Rainbow-----Mixed fruit

Frisbee-----Napkin

Slip 'n Slide-----Brownies & Ice cream

Mud Pie-----Lasagna

Hopscotch-----Silverware

Birds Nest-----Garlic Bread

Wiggly Worm-----Broccoli

Once I had the dinner all ready to go in the kitchen, I invited the family to dinner.  I donned my apron and pretended to be their waitress for the evening.  When my family came in the room, I seated them at their table and gave them each a Menu.  Each person was only allowed to order 3 items on the menu at first. (Remember, my family didn't know what they were really ordering from the menu!) 

After everyone ordered the first time, they started guessing which items went with which names on menu.  I let my family order from the menu 2 more times (a total of 3 times), and each time they were only allowed to order 3 items from the menu.  This made it possible for everyone to order one of everything on the menu. For instance, nobody ordered silverware the first time so we had to use our fingers.  Even my husband, who HATES getting messy, ate with his fingers.  He was a great sport!!

It was a very fun evening.  I enjoyed pretending to be the waitress and watching the surprised looks on everyone's faces when the received their orders.  

We had a great time with this "secret dinner" idea, and we know you will too!

Talking Pizza

It's one of the best times when everyone is helping to prepare dinner together (plus, it makes less work for you).  It's also one of the best times to talk with your kids.

When your preparing a meal together with your kids, they naturally start communicating with you about the task at hand (what step comes next, what else needs to be done, etc.) or asking questions.  It feels good as parent to have your children, no matter what age, look to you for help and guidance or to simply open up and communicate!  That's why I'm excited to post about "talking" pizza.

Pizza is definitely one of our family favs.  Whenever my kids ask what we're having for dinner and I say, "pizza," I always get a big smile.  (Kinda makes you feel like mom of the year, sweet!)  Although it's quick and easy to pick up a pizza on your way home from work, it's more fun to have homemade pizza.  Homemade pizza is yummy, affordable, and you can add as toppings as you want!

*Pizza also is a great party food.  So, if you want to create a fun "party" atmosphere for your family or even just you and your husband, pizza is perfect!  Pizza is fun to have at the dinner table or while watching a family movie together.

Here is the pizza dough recipe that we used (from Boche):

Pizza Dough

3 cups hot tap water

1 TBS. Saf yeast

 2 TBS. honey

1 TBS salt

6-8 cups flour

1 TBS dough enhancer

Put water, honey, and 3 cups of flour in a mixing bowl.  Mix until paste consistency.  Add yeast and salt.    Add flour 1 cup at a time until the dough pulls away from sides of the bowl.  We used whole wheat flour and kneaded it for 10 min.  If you are using white flour knead for 5 min. (depending on mixer it may vary).  Add the dough enhancer the last 2 minutes of kneading.  Preheat oven to 500 degrees.  Roll crust, add toppings, and bake for 7 minutes (or until crust is light brown and cheese is melted). In my oven, it took me approx. 12 minutes to cook a large pizza.

*Note: This recipe makes A LOT of dough, so you might want to half the recipe.  Or you can save half in the fridge for bread sticks or rolls to go with tomorrow's dinner. 

We opted to use the Hunt's tomato sauce  and mozzarella cheese.  Then we added lots of veggies and pepperoni to top off our pizza.

Our favorite drink to have with pizza is root beer, and homemade is the BEST! Here is the root beer recipe that we use:

Root Beer

 6 cups white sugar

3 1/3 gallons of cold water
1 (2 ounce) bottle of root beer extract
4 pds. Dry ice

Enjoy your own family "talking" pizza. Bon appetite!

You Lift Me UP

We all love receiving special notes of appreciation!!

This is a quick and easy dinner activity idea to make the whole family feel appreciated.  

At everyone's plate I put a can of 7-Up with a simple label taped around it that said, "You Lift Me UP!"

Click here to print your own labels

{labels fit easily around 12 oz. soda cans} 

Then I personalized each label by writing something that I liked about each person and I tied a balloon to the top of each can.  The balloons added a fun, colorful twist to our dinner drink!  

During dinner we talked about something or someone who had lifted us up during the week.  This was very insightful and inspiring to hear all of the positive events that happened in the lives of my family.  Also, my children really enjoyed the simple note that I wrote about each of them.  It was simple and unique way to express my love for them.

*If you want, a fun family activity would be to watch the Disney Pixar movie UP after dinner!

*Another fun variation would be to leave a can of 7-Up in each family member's room as a thoughtful surprise when they came home from school or work - a welcome treat after a long day!

Lego My Lego Dinner

In my family we love LEGOs!!  So I decided to do a Lego activity dinner night. I wanted something fun that we could do and talk about during dinner.


We have lots of Legos at our house, so this was a quick and easy activity to put together. 

{dollar store finds}

I wanted to create some cute place settings for dinner, so I set off to the dollar store to buy a few additional supplies.  I found some cute, bright colored baskets and a sink drainer that looked "Lego'y" as part of our table decoration.  I bought enough baskets and sink drainers for every person in the family.

The first thing I did was paint the sink drainer with some acrylic paint I already had on hand.  My daughter helped me with the painting and had loads of fun.  But, if you wanted to surprise your family with this Lego dinner, you could easily do the painting yourself in ten minutes (or less).

{dinner table Lego display}

To set the table, I filled my dollar store baskets with Legos.  I used the painted sink drainers as a table runner in the middle of the table and used some colorful dinnerware that matched our Lego colors.  I  also added a "Lego my Lego Creation" sign {mimicking the logo from the Ego Waffle commercials, ha ha!}.

Click here to print your own Lego sign
{fits in 4 x 6" frame}

I planned two Lego activities for our dinner time event!!

Activity #1 - Just before dinner was ready, everyone picked a Lego basket from the table.  The rule was to make any Lego creation of your choice in five minutes or less.  This requires\d some creativity depending on what Legos we had in our baskets.  When everyone was finished, we place our Lego creations in the center of the table.

As we sat down to dinner, our Lego creations made for a great conversation piece as we tried to guess each others creations.  This activity was so fun and easy going, it kept everyone engaged in the conversation.  Everyone enjoyed the attention as the others gave compliments and made guesses about their Lego creation!!

{our Lego creations}

Here are our creations...can you guess what they are supposed to be?  {I'll give you a hint.....Perry the Platapuse, house boat and a tractor.}

Activity #2 - After we were done eating (and guessing), we moved on to the second activity.  The only rule for the second activity was that you had to use every Lego in your basket.  So, we each built a Lego statue. 

{our Lego statues}

When we were done building our statues, we assigned each one a number {I used some 3 x 5" index card I already had}.  Then we individually brainstormed a unique name for each statue.  We wrote down our  ideas then took turns sharing them and voted on the name that we all liked best.  After we voted, I wrote down the statue name on the index cards.

These two activities added a little variety to our normal dinner time routine!!