3 Ways Family Bonding Can Positively Boost Your Homeschool

Do you ever look back at your childhood and wish your family was closer or that you had better relationships?

Maybe after you became a parent, you see opportunities your own parents missed when it came to strengthening relationships. Not with resentment or blame of course, but you see that with more intentionality toward relationships maybe things could have been different for you and your family growing up.

It could be those exact thoughts are what motivate you to be mindful of how you are raising your children currently. Hindsight is 20/20, and no one should live in regret. But by taking on a constructive mindset for the future, you can positively impact your children and work on family bonding moving forward.

Here are 3 Easy Ways to Focus on Family Bonding While Homeschooling

1. Read together.

This one may seem obvious to some, but if you aren’t reading with your children on a regular basis, you really should be. The impact of reading together as a family can be massive. Reading together is beneficial for children of all ages, even teens.

Here are just a few benefits of reading together as a family:

• Family bonding happens naturally: When you sit down to read to your children, they will see that you are investing time in them, they will feel a sense of importance thus creating a stronger bond between parent and child.
• Your children will develop important skills: Reading to your children or allowing them to read aloud, both can help your children developmentally. Consistently reading together can strengthen your children’s reading skills, vocabulary skills, and build their confidence.
• You will have meaningful conversations with your family: Reading as a family can help build social skills and open the door for meaningful conversations. Your children can exercise their imagination, learn about essential emotions, and increase their level of comprehension.

2. Play together.

I have to admit this one is a struggle for me. I am not the “fun” mom, so general “play” does not feel natural to me. I am serious by nature, so it takes some real initiative for me to want to play a board game.

If you struggle in that area too, find whatever it is that you enjoy doing with your children that is also fun for them. It doesn’t have to be a board game or floor play. Maybe try sharing hobbies that the whole family takes pleasure in.

But share something that you naturally enjoy, so your children can feel satisfaction in your genuine happiness rather than you counting the moments before you can move on to something else. Not that we have ever done that before, right? Wink.

Suggestions for playing with your children may include:

Board Games
Crafting
Sensory Fun – Slime, Play-doh, or Moonsand
Sewing/Quilting
Knitting/Crocheting
Woodworking Projects
Nature Study
Art, Drawing, Painting
Storytelling/Creative Writing
Cooking/Baking
Physical Games/Outdoor Play
Fishing/Hunting
Gardening

3. Eat together.

For many of us eating together may seem obvious, but for some families, we get busy and eating on the go happens too frequently. Try your best to eat together as a family as often as you can.

Ideas for Making Family Meals Happen Together

• Healthy families can meal prep together. Even toddlers and preschoolers can help by placing the chopped veggies in containers or let them play with interesting food scraps or herbs for fun sensory play while you prep.
• Cook together. Children of all ages can enjoy cooking as a family. Cooking a meal together is a fantastic way to bond as a family. Everyone has an important part to play in making the meal come together. Little helpers can set the table and learn incredible life skills helping create family meal time.
• Older children can help research and plan family grocery lists and meal plans. Grocery lists and meal planning can help mom with some significant responsibilities too! Not to mention all the hidden learning skills that come with meal planning and cooking. (Reading, writing, math, computer skills, research skills and more!)

Benefits of cooking together as a family

When the entire family comes together to make meals happen, your children get real-life training in teamwork. The first few times it may take a bit of acclimating to the new routine, but if you can get them to work alongside one another, your family will be better for it. Cooperation between siblings and learning to work together are perfect examples of how your family can use cooking to exercise family bonding.

I hope this sparks some easy ideas for your family to focus on family bonding. There is no right or wrong way to cultivate a family mindset, do what works best for your family’s lifestyle. For more ideas like these subscribe to my newsletter below.