What Will Your Children Remember?

This time of year the leaves are turning colors, the air is cooling, and we all pause to think about what we are thankful for.

I thought about that for a while…not just what I am thankful for but what will my kids and grandkids be thankful for?

What will be the things your children remember when they are grown?

Of course there will be the “big moments”…the first day of school and making the team. There will be their “favorites”…mom’s “casserole surprise” and summer camps. All the “every day, little” things…the way their sister laughed till she cried, how their brother always wanted to play the ‘Would You Rather Game’, or how their dad insisted on teaching them the “right way” to shoot a basketball. They’ll remember the time they spent doing homework and riding bikes, building forts, and creating sidewalk art.

And this time of year, they will remember your family traditions-traditions that share your family history and culture. Traditions teach your children the values you want to promote, and they grow as your family does. Your children will pass some of those down to their own children, so let’s make them count!

Let’s make sure they are active in all the “busyness” of the holidays.

Nothing seems to be quite as busy as the work around the holiday meals-whatever that may be! Your children can be part of that controlled chaos!

You can help them look through recipes for the meal. They can “write” grocery lists or draw pictures of the items. Encourage your children to help shop for the items and read the labels to them. Show them how to decorate menus or place cards for your family dinner.

You can spend time reading books with your children about thankfulness and talking about what you are thankful for. Then ask them what they are thankful for. Those conversations will become beautiful memories!

Maybe they could start their own tradition of asking family members to write down something they are thankful for, reading them aloud, and saving them in a jar to be re-read next year.

What incredible memories they will be making by being involved-and building some of those early literacy skills at the same time:)

We all know that children learn through repetition, but traditions are more than just that. They are about being a part of something from the past and present.

So this Thanksgiving, along with all the food, family, friends, and fun, take time to involve your children in the festivities! Create family traditions they will pass along.

You’ll be creating great memories of thankfulness.

Happy Reading!

Lisa Davis

Early Literacy Coordinator