New Year…. New Practices!

A New Year always brings a sense of a new beginning and a new start. New Year’s Resolutions do not always last long…. But how about a Family New Year’s Resolution that will have lasting effects for everyone!  I challenge every family reading this blog to set aside one hour each week to sit down and read. I mean each person in the family sits and reads… at the same time.  It may seem odd to have everyone reading at the same time. But, when kids see their parents or other adults doing something positive, it has a long-lasting effect on them. Kids who see adults read and get joy out of reading are more likely to develop good reading habits. Often, we as adults say we want our kids to do something that we don’t do (think eating vegetables!). Modeling the behavior, we want for our kids is the best way to ensure that our kids will develop that skill. Taking one hour a week to read as a family is a great tradition to start. One may ask… why only an hour a week? Well… I have two boys. One is 13 and one is 11. And our lives can get busy. Between music lessons, sporting events, school activities, work, careers, and everything else that life throws at you. I think starting at one hour… is a good goal. You may even want to split it up into 20 or 30 minute increments. The goal is for your kids to see you read and to see you enjoy it. Also… having an hour of quiet time would be beneficial to my family and I would think to many other families out there. So, I challenge you to become a family that READS together!