Can you think of some activities that will bring our family closer together next year? - Seeking New Activities
Answer: This year, make a New Year's resolution that will benefit your family by helping to reduce stress and bringing everyone closer together. Resolve now to spend one day or part of a day each month doing an activity together as a family. Try to choose something that the family does not ordinarily do to give an educational flavor to the activity. Education should never be confined to school.
New Year's Day is a great time to get all the family members together with a calendar so that everyone can select the activity days and make them off-limits for any other activities. The more suggestions your children make, the more enthusiastic they will be. Plus, the younger your children are now, the more likely a family day will become a cherished tradition. Don't select an activity solely because of its educational value; the activity must also be fun. Good feelings from the activities will carry over to make homework and chore times much easier. Here are some educational activities your family might wish to put on their calendar:
* Give your family an ethnic experience by dining in a restaurant that features the food of another country. Select a cuisine that is unfamiliar to your family. Before your visit, read about the country in an encyclopedia or online so everyone will know more about it.
* Select a local author whose books are well-known and have been read by some of the family members. Then visit the author's home or a place associated with him or her. For example, you might visit areas described by Mark Twain or Laura Ingalls Wilder if they are close to where you live.
* Attend a musical concert in a casual atmosphere that will allow you to picnic. You could choose the pops concert of a symphony orchestra or a bluegrass festival.
* Visit places such as zoos, airports, farms, aquariums and museums that you might ordinarily visit. Only this time, take tours in order to get an in-depth or behind-the-scenes look at the place.
* Plan a trip to a farm that will let you pick such crops as strawberries, apples, pumpkins, grapes, oranges or other fruits and vegetables. Then be sure to use them in your next meal. Or you could even preserve or freeze them for future meals.
* Attend an unusual event, such as a balloon race, air show or antique-car exhibition.
* On a national holiday, plan to attend a civic event, from a picnic to a concert or parade.
* Attend a local sporting event that will let you see athletes in action up close. Go beyond typical events to watching a bocci, volleyball, tennis, bowling or putt-putt golf match.
* Ride an old train or streetcar to revisit what transportation was like just a few years ago.
Each and every one of these activities will lead to enjoyable family discussions about the trips. If your family has any problem thinking of appealing activities, look for more activities in your local newspaper.