“Nothing.” “Stuff.” “Fine.”
Are these the standard answers you get when you ask your children about school?
And, sometimes, those are the answers on a good day. At least those are better than a dismissive shrug of the shoulders.
After-school specials and commercials painted a fantasy world of family life for many of us, as we watched child and parent huddled together over milk and cookies, deep in conversation about the world of school, friends, and beyond. 🤗 In the real world, it sometimes feels like pulling teeth to even get those one word answers.
Part of the problem may lie in the questions we ask children. When the question is, “how was your day?”, “fine” may feel like a completely acceptable answer. Well-formed questions invite the person who was asked to walk through a door into an interesting interaction.
There are 3 keys to crafting an effective conversation starter. We've also listed 7 sample questions to get the conversations started.
1. Ask open-ended questions.
Close-ended questions are those that can be answered with a one or two-word answer, and they tend to limit conversation. Open-ended questions require more than one word, and usually some thought to answer.
2. Ask for specific information.
The question, “What did you do at school today?” is open-ended, but is also very general and a quick one-word answer, like “I played,” answers the question without getting into specifics that might continue the conversation.
Instead, the question, “Tell me two things you learned today?” inspires both thought and requires a child to provide a more complex response.
Specific questions also help narrow a child’s focus to certain aspects of their day, which makes a more in-depth answer more likely.
3. Start with your own story.
Children are not born naturally understanding the give-and-take of conversation. As with almost everything else in life, it is up to adults to teach them. You can model these rules by starting with your own story with a statement like, “Start thinking of your favorite part of the day, but first, let me tell you something that I enjoyed today.”
Sample Conversation Starters for Your Child
When looking to have in-depth conversations with your child, get creative with how you start. Use some of the following ideas to inspire your own questions.
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What happened that was interesting today?
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Tell me 3 things you noticed today.
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Tell me something you did well today.
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If you had to pick one word to describe today, what would it be?
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What was the most fun thing that happened today?
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Did your day go like you thought it would when you woke up this morning?
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If you have to give today a rating from 1 – 10, what would it be?
The most important aspect of encouraging conversation is to make your child feel like they are listened to and respected when they are speaking. That means putting down the device, muting the volume, and making eye contact (if you are not driving) so your child knows they have your attention while speaking.
This feeling of being the center of your world will make it more likely they will engage in conversation in the future.
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