Spontaneous Lesson about Optimism for Kids & Quick Tips for a Stronger, Happier Family [Friday’s Fast Five: 7th Edition]

Building a stronger, happier family is at the top of most parents’ list. However, we are busy! These weekly Fast Five ideas and tips are a quick way to brainstorm, check-in, and create the family relationships you really want. An active game, a spontaneous and simple lesson about optimism for kids, a favorite Star Wars character, and more are included in today’s ideas. Happy Friday!

* These ideas are NOT meant to be a checklist or guilt trip of things we “should do.” Rather, they are intended to inspire you to find what works for YOUR family to learn, laugh, and love together. Remember to stick to the Simple Side of Parenting.

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What is Friday’s Fast Five?

Each Friday, we share five quick and simple ideas for families under the following categories:

1. Something Fun

This is an activity, game, entertainment recommendation, or simple outing for family fun.

2. A Little Lesson

Here you will find a simple lesson to help teach kids important ideas. Examples include life skills or personal qualities like kindness and patience.

3. A Service Idea

Volunteering is good for our mental and physical health. Serving together strengthens relationships with those we serve and those we serve with. Service can be fun and eye-opening. Service is an important way to learn, laugh, and love together.

4. Something Random

This is a random thought, idea, quote, or meme, typically to help you smile. 🙂

5. A Quick Tip

Here you will find a quick parenting or family tip for peaceful parenting or building a stronger, happier family. These come from research, personal experience, or those common sense reminders we all need to hear once in a while.

With that, here is the seventh edition of Friday’s Fast Five. (You can find other editions HERE.)

1. Something Fun: Play SPUD

It’s fitting that I learned how to play SPUD while we lived in Idaho. 🙂 This is a simple game that is active and can be played outside or in a gym. It’s perfect for families, friend get-togethers, or groups like Cub Scouts or classes.

To play SPUD you’ll need one ball that is soft enough that it won’t hurt if it hits someone. Dodgeballs work really well or a soccer ball or volleyball that is slightly deflated.

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Start by numbering the players and having them remember their number. (Honestly, that’s the hardest part of the game!)

Everyone stands together. Someone begins the round by throwing the ball up and shouting a number. Everybody runs away, except the player whose number was called. That player catches the ball and then yells, “Spud!”

All the runners freeze. The player with the ball rolls it, and any player the ball hits gets a letter…S-P-U-D. If players move after “Spud!” and before the round ends, they get a letter as well.

The winner is the last player to spell SPUD.

2. A Little Lesson: Spontaneous Lesson about Optimism for Kids

While we can use this lesson about optimism for kids anytime, it’s going to be most powerful if we share it the next time it rains.

The next time it rains, talk about how emotions are like the weather. They are just as real as rain and change just as often.

I highly recommend the book The Whole-Brain Child to parents. It’s packed with helpful information, tools, and language about working through emotion, processing, and developing the whole brain.

In the book, Siegel and Bryson say the following in comparing emotions to the weather:

“Rain is real, and we’d be foolish to stand in a downpour and act as if it weren’t actually raining. But we’d be just as foolish to expect that the sun will never reappear.”

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This simple discussion with our children can help them understand the transience of emotion and thus look forward with optimism to brighter feelings and days.

If you want to take this lesson about optimism for kids the extra mile, show that good things can come of hard emotions too by going out and playing in the rain together. That’s a lesson the kids won’t soon forget!

Wondering how to fit Little Lessons into your busy family schedule?

The two main ways to fit important lessons into your busy family schedule are to find spontaneous teaching moments throughout the day and to schedule family learning time each week. These two posts go into detail about these two ways and tips for making it happen with your family.

How Busy Parents Can Teach Important Life Lessons

6 Tips for Family Time that Teaches Life’s Most Important Lessons

3. A Service Idea: Make and Donate a Scarf to a Soldier

Express gratitude for a soldier’s service by making a scarf and donating it. Operation Gratitude is a great organization to work with that supports soldiers, veterans, wounded heroes and caregivers, military families, and first responders.

Among other things, they send letters and packages to servicemembers that include homemade items like hats and scarves. There’s a special push in September to donate so the items can be ready for holiday care packages.

If you or your kids don’t know how to knit or aren’t interested in learning, scarves can be made with a Knitting Loom. This is a much easier technique that kids can quickly learn. This video shows how to make a scarf with a round knitting loom.

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Service is a great way to build a stronger, happier family. If you want more service ideas, request Raising Compassionate Children in a Conceited World, which includes 101 Service Ideas for Families.

4. Something Random: Yoda Meme

May your fate be better than Yoda’s.

5. A Quick Tip: Generous Thoughts

In quiet moments we can ask, “How can I show my love today?” and then reflect. Wait for a thought or a feeling. We might feel impressed to reach out to anyone in our sphere of influence. Most often, however, we will know how best to love those under our own roof.

When that impression comes, either from asking or in a random moment throughout the day, act.

As you recognize and act upon those quiet, generous feelings, you may be the one bringing light and love to a family member or friend who thinks they’re doing just fine, but really needs you more than they even realize. You will be able to provide what your family really needs from you.

Related: What Your Family Really Needs From You

And that is Friday’s Fast Five!

You can also see Friday’s Fast Five on Instagram or other editions HERE.

Building a Stronger, Happier Family

It takes time and intention to build a stronger, happier family. I hope Friday’s Fast Five helps you find the ways that work for YOUR family to learn, laugh, and love together.

We will never regret the time we devote to our families and relationships with our kids.

Have a great weekend with your family, know that you’re loved, and keep on lovin’!

Do you have a great idea for a future Friday’s Fast Five? Have a question or parenting struggle you want help with? Share in the comments, shoot me an Email, or schedule a call.

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