Dinner Time Family Conversations

Often the importance of having dinner with the whole family at the dinner table is stressed. We are told that ‘a family that eats together stays together’; we even follow it to the T by positioning the whole family in front of the television while eating, right? Wrong. Television does nothing to help the family bond better; in fact, it only widens the gap between members of the family, especially parents and children. It is thus better to give the TV a break and to sit at the dinner table, the old-fashioned way and eat like they did in good old days. Family dinners need another essential ingredient – conversations that bring in a positive atmosphere. Nevertheless, it is often difficult to break the ice at a family dinner. Moreover, many people make the mistake of raising controversial topics at dinnertime, causing one or more members, or the whole family, to lose their appetite. Here are some tips to keep in mind about conversations during family dinners.  

 

Family Dinner Conversation Ideas 

Start Early
It often serves well to start the conversation right before dinner so that setting the table and other chores that kick start dinnertime may become less boring. Doing things together, be it talking or laying the table, can make family members drop their inhibitions so that there are no awkward moments when people are actually eating. Also, you could conveniently change the topic if you feel that it might breed controversies and spoil everyone’s mood and appetite. 

Children
Children are not usually very good at sharing information and do not know exactly how to respond when you ask totally generalized questions like “How was school today?” so make sure you know more about them than just the fact that they go to school – like which book they are reading or movie they watched last. Or ask them about the extracurricular activities that they might be participating in – be it music, painting or any sport they might be undergoing coaching for like cricket or football. 

Initiate
If you have had a funny or positive incident in your day at the work, share it with others first, especially if you have children who are feeling awkward at the dinner table. It makes little difference if you end up laughing at your expense. If it helps break the ice at a family dinner; the little jab on your ego is worth it! 

Be Positive
Family dinners should be positive and conversations during dinnertime should encourage family members to eat well, not make them lose their appetite. All controversial topics should be kept away from the dinnertime. There are plenty of other times when such topics can be discussed, but dinnertime is definitely not the right time. 

Back To Childhood
It serves as a great icebreaker if adults share their childhood memories with the children. The kids will always feel elated to hear about the crazy, sometimes stupid things that grownups did as children as it leaves them with the feeling that the people who constantly keep telling them to “clean up their plate, or no there will be no ice cream” were no different from them as children.