- The technological distractions of
smartphones and video games, extra-
curricular activities, and school and work
pressures all pull family members in
different directions, and family meetings
can help counterbalance the chaos. - Family meetings ground families and
encourage connections and identity. They
can send a message that family time is
important and is a priority. - Family meetings provide
a platform for conflicts to be
addressed and for problems to be
resolved in a way that feels fair to
everyone. Parents set limits of what is
acceptable, but everyone has input. - Children learn to examine
situations, propose solutions and
evaluate results with guidance,
support and demonstrations from
their parents and older siblings. They
begin to see themselves as capable of
finding solutions to problems. - Family meetings provide the
opportunity for information to be shared
equally with everyone.
Source: The Center for Parenting Educatione n g a g e
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FAMILY
MEETINGS
W
ith today’s hectic pace of
life, families rarely take
time to sit down together to
make important decisions about family
issues. As a result, plans are made quickly,
often solely by the parents with no say
from children, who play an important role
in the family.
Family meetings are a great way to
include everyone in the decision-
making process. While sensitive
issues can—and most likely will—
be addressed, family meetings also
provide a time for members to focus
on being a family. Here are some
benefits of holding your own family
meetings:
- Because meetings give
everyone a voice, they help build
self-esteem. Children are treated
like valued members, whose ideas
are listened to and considered. - The skills children learn in
family meetings, such as compromise,
openness to other’s ideas and cooperation,
will help them to deal effectively with
problems they encounter in other
situations and social settings. - By participating in family
meetings, children learn to take the perspective
of the whole group and to think about what
is good for the family as a whole, not just
themselves.
COMPILED BY Lauryn Brown
FAMILY