“For Parents of Little Ones,” Friend, February 2019

For Parents of Little Ones

Prophets have promised that consistently having home evening will bring powerful blessings. For example, President Thomas S. Monson said that it “can bring spiritual growth to each member of the family, helping him or her to withstand the temptations which are everywhere.”* But home evening can be tricky with young children. How can we help them have a good experience? Here are ideas that have worked for other parents.

“Give them a job! Help them lead the opening song, read a scripture, or hold a picture.” —Katrina A.

“It’s all about the storytelling. Act it out, make characters with dough, draw, etc. Throwing cotton-ball ‘stones’ at Goliath never gets old! Also, don’t be afraid to repeat. You don’t need to do a brand-new lesson every week. Kids learn by repetition anyway, so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel each time.” —Marcia V.

“We have a tradition of having a dance party and playing hide-and-seek after home evening each week. This helps our children engage in the lesson because they know they will get to have fun afterward.” —Shannon T.

“The biggest tip I have is ‘Don’t worry that it isn’t perfect.’ Seriously. It’s better to have a five-minute scripture story while trying to keep your kids from jumping on the sofa than to not have family night at all.” —Pippa W.