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Now is the perfect time to institute family fun night – here’s how

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With busy work and school schedules as well as all those extracurricular activities, it’s easy to understand why many parents feel life is too busy for a family fun night. Sure life amps up once school is in session, but it’s important to set aside one evening a week for a family fun night. Lots of families already do. If you and your partner have been wanting to put one on the schedule, but struggle to find an idea for family nights, remember that any time of the year is ideal. Family fun nights have a lot of pluses for kids and teens too. When families have regular organized nights together, it tends to help kids in the classroom as well as with communication and social skills. Of course, setting aside time for family fun nights is excellent for bonding. Why wait for vacations or snow days to have quality family fun? If you’re not sure how to put together a family fun night. No worries. We’ve got cool suggestions.

Ideas for family fun nights

Family playing Monoply
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Game night

Board games have so many benefits for kids. They help with reading, math, and problem solving skills while being exciting too. All you need for a family game night is a bunch of board games. Try and rotate the games played each week. For families with multiple ages, just put little ones on teams with a parent so they feel included.

A family enjoying a movie on their couch
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Movie night

With a multitude of streaming services to choose from, finding family movies for everyone to watch isn’t difficult. Keep movie nights interesting by letting family members take turns choosing the movie. When a family member’s turn is up, he or she has a week to find a good flick.

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Cooking night

Making a meal together can be super fun and it’s a great way to introduce the kiddos to an important life skill. When cooking for a family fun night, choose a new recipe or favorites. Be sure everyone is included in the meal prep and cooking process. Once family cooking nights become a regular thing, let kids have a hand in choosing the menu.

Go for a family walk

When the dishes are done, put on the sneakers and head out into the neighborhood for a walk. Family walks can be done regardless of the season. Change things up by adding the occasional scavenger hunt on family walk nights.

Camping in the backyard for family fun night
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Backyard camping

You don’t have to drive miles to pitch a tent and enjoy the great outdoors. A backyard camping excursion can be just as thrilling as a trip out into the woods. Pitch a tent, make s’mores, tell scary stories, and look up at the stars. If Mother Nature rains on a backyard camping night, moving the campsite inside.

Go on an outing

There are always cool things going on in local communities and a family fun night is the ideal opportunity to try out a new restaurant, paint studio, go bowling, or attend a program at the public library.

Craft night

Arts and crafts are a wonderful stress reliever for adults, kids, and teens. Instituting a family craft night can be quite relaxing for the whole family. A family craft night can be as simple as coloring or as involved as cutting up jack-o-lanterns to decorate the front porch for Halloween.

Baking night

Just like cooking, baking as a family is delicious. Everyone can have a hand in making cookie dough, cupcakes, or muffins for the next day’s breakfast.

Hide-and-seek

Think back to when you were young and the neighborhood kids rounded up for an evening game of hide-and-seek. Outfit everyone with flashlights and count to 10. Not it!

Sport night

Exercising as a family is a perfect pick to get and keep everyone healthy. Whether it’s basketball on the driveway hoop, soccer in the yard, or street hockey, dividing the family into teams for a family fun night of sports is a score.

Puzzle night

Like games, jigsaw puzzles work the mind. Having a large jigsaw puzzle for the family to work on during a family fun night is relaxing and engaging. Put on favorite tunes while everyone talks and works on the puzzle. Keep the puzzle out during the rest of the week for the kids to work on. It’s more beneficial than solving puzzles on those smartphones. Do seasonal or holiday puzzles and have a new one ready for when the one everyone is working on is finished.

Lego night

Lots of kids and adults are into Legos. Those bricks can be addicting. Work on a Lego set together or have a big box of Legos and let the imagination run wild.

Setting aside one evening a week for a family fun night is a must. If you think you don’t have time for a family fun night once a week, start out with a monthly family fun night. To keep the kids interested change up the menu for family fun nights. When family members get bored of game nights or aren’t excited about a family movie night, spice it up by tossing in a craft or baking night. With these 12 family fun night ideas, there’s plenty of inspiration. Family fun nights are just as beneficial for the adults as the kiddos and you don’t have to wait until the next vacation to have one. Start by building family fun nights right into the calendar. You’ll be surprised how quickly it becomes part of the schedule.

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Dawn Miller
Dawn Miller
Contributor
Dawn Miller began her professional life as an elementary school teacher before returning to her first love, writing. In…
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