Dinner time with the kiddos isn’t always the relaxing family bonding time you envisioned. Which is why having some conversation starters for kids handy is never a bad idea.

Otherwise you can end up with a night of “eat your broccoli!” “Don’t poke your sister!” “Put down that iPad!”

You get the picture.

While the reality of mealtime at your house might not (yet) be ideal, the concept of family dinners is a good one. Research shows:

  • Frequent family dinners are the most important factor in the development of a child’s vocabulary (Harvard Research)
  • Regular family dinners increase the likelihood of strong relationships between parents and teens; which in turn, results in a dramatic decrease in teen substance abuse (Columbia University)
  • Children aged 11-18 who frequently eat meals as a family have a lower rate of depression and suicidal tendencies (Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine)

A Harvard Study found that when it comes to activities that promote language development, family dinners were at the very top of the list.

And families that engaged in extended conversations, like storytelling, had children with better language skills.

“When there is more than one adult at the table, it tends to make talk richer, if topics are established by adult interest it can be an extremely valuable opportunity for children to learn.” Dr. Catherine Snow, Professor of Education, Harvard University

Related: How To Rock Your Next Family Game Night

This is why conversation starters for kids are so great!

You can spark up the kind of discourse that will engage your children and make family dinners fun again.

 

How It Works

If you want to get a fun or meaningful conversation going, you need questions for kids that will require more than “yes”, “no”, or “fine” for an answer.

“How was your day?” is for amateurs.

We’ve got 30 conversation starters for kids that are sure to invoke laughs, spark creative thinking, and maybe even deliver a few surprises at the dinner table.

You can write the questions down on note cards or little slips of paper and have the kids each pick one as a table topic.

Trust us, kids LOVE this. It makes the whole dining experience into a kind of game for them.

Or you can keep this list of conversation starters for kids nearby and just throw out a random question to spice things up when there’s a lull.

These are good conversation topics for adults too!

Also In Beenke: Strengthen Your Bond With These 15 Toddler Activities

However you use the questions, you’re guaranteed to have better discussions and more enjoyable family dinner experience.

You may find that the kids actually STAY at the table longer, instead of rushing off to some other task because they’re having that much fun.

Plus, you get to learn a lot of cool things about the people you love you that you might not have discovered if you hadn’t asked. These are the kind of get to know you questions for kids that bring families closer.

 

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30 Conversation Starters For Kids

  1. If you can have any superpower, which one would you choose and why?
  2. If you could choose an award to win (it can be real or made-up) what would you pick and why?
  3. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you want to live?
  4. What would you do if you won a million dollars? How would you spend the money?
  5. If you could be any animal, what would you want to be?
  6. If you were your teacher, what rule would you make for the class?
  7. If you could be in any movie, what movie would you be in and which character would you be?
  8. What two things do you think you’re really good at?
  9. What’s your favorite book? Why?
  10. If you could be famous for anything, what would you want to be famous for
  11. If you could change one thing in the world, what would you change?
  12. Share the funniest joke you know.
  13. Who is someone you admire or look up to?
  14. If you were a character in a book, who would you be?
  15. If mom or dad were a character in a book, who would they be?
  16. If you could eat only one food for a week, what would it be?
  17. Describe yourself in three words.
  18. Who is the nicest or kindest person you know?
  19. If you could be invisible for one day, what would you do?
  20. What do you like most about your parents or siblings?
  21. If the dog/cat could talk, what would they say?
  22. If you could only keep one toy to play with, which one would you choose and why?
  23. If you could have any job in the world, what would it be?
  24. What are you scared of?
  25. If you could be really talented at something, what would you want to be great at?
  26. If you could change one thing that happened this week, what would you change?
  27. If you could make the laws, what is one law you’d definitely pass?
  28. If you could make your own holiday, what would it be? What would you call it?
  29. What is your favorite game to play with your friends?
  30. What is something you would like to do with the whole family?

 

Are you ready to make your next family dinner awesome?

Pull out these conversation starters for kids to jump start some lively conversations. Have fun with it!

You just might turn dinner time into one of those great family memories your kids carry into adulthood.

 

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