Many families mimic the situational comedies on TV or their families act as if they are on survivor trying to throw each other off the island using primate politics and Machiavellian schemes. This detracts from the family unit and it is indeed unfortunate, but it does not have to be that way. For instance, the family could just as easily entertain themselves in healthy and fun competition through educational trivia games. Luckily these things are catching on and more and more families are engaging in trivial pursuit type activities.
Not long ago, we were invited to a family’s home for dinner, it was a wonderful dinner and delicious and after the dinner was winding down and while desert was served, one of the younger kids asked a question. Name the 13 original colonies? Sounds simple right, well it is not too difficult, but it is not always so easy to ask answer these questions out of the blue, when you only have 10 fingers to keep track of the answers. Eventually within a minute or two, we got them all using our collective memories and then onto the next question.
Nearly an hour had passed and the questions got tougher and tougher and each time everyone learned something new, it was amazing how smart everyone was and especially the abilities of some of the kids. It should not be surprising that all three of their children were at the top of their classes, and had a thirst for knowledge. Which made me wonder; What if all families spent time playing such educational games with their children.
The habit of reading should be inculcated at an early age. After all, as they grow up they will be required to read and read more and read even more. If children are already familiar with books and have read books for children, you will find that they will not shirk from reading textbooks too.
In fact, books are the best gift you can give to your child. Books for children are available for all ages – toddlers, pre-schoolers, school going and teenagers. For smaller kids here are picture books that your young one may not understand to start with but they provide a positive association with books in general and this proves to be extremely beneficial as the child grows. Books for children that are meant for use during early childhood are very colorful and attractive. They are also made of soft material and do not harm children in any way. Reputable manufacturers ensure that the paper and ink used in them do not contain any toxic material.
