FocusOnTheFamily

A new day

Written by Sheila Seifert

To teach your children about one aspect of joy, declare one Saturday as New Day.

On this day, everything they do should be new. Instead of getting dressed the way they usually do, have them put on their clothing out of order or on backward. For breakfast, serve lunch, and then read them a bedtime story. Continually change things that happen in a normal day so that tweens are anticipating how they will complete their chores and other routine activities.

Some ideas for helping the day feel new to your kids are to walk backward, comb their hair with their arms interlocked, turn a book upside down and try to read it, eat breakfast foods for lunch, picnic at the side of the house, have a laughing contest during rest time, sing a song in reverse, enter the house only by the back door, etc. Perhaps set a timer, and every hour do something different together.

The next day, explain that God’s joy allows people to see everyday things in a new way and even enjoy activities that we don’t necessarily like. Remind them that they can have God’s joy in all they do because God’s love for them brings joy.

From Focus on Your Child’s Tween Ages, April 2008. Published by Focus on the Family*. © 2008 Focus on the Family. All rights reserved. International copyright secured. Used by permission. *U.S.A.

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