#12 Wholesome Family Recreation

Purpose

To provide families with wholesome recreational activities that will create bonding experiences.

In the book Strengthening Our Families: An In-Depth Look at the Proclamation on the Family², there is a focus on the following phrase from the Proclamation,

“Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of... wholesome recreational activities” (The Family: A Proclamation to the World, ¶ 7). We need to make sure that we plan activities with our families.  Some think that recreation is simply idleness, not working. Recreation and idleness are not the same thing.  Wholesome recreation can not only be fun, but can serve as a teaching tool and a bonding experience for families. We can learn to cooperate with each other, take turns, develop team work, fairness, and have personal growth.

Some of the principles that can help guide us in our family recreation include¹:

•   Plan in advance

•   Plan age-appropriate activities

•   Plan activities that will foster development and bonding of each member of the family

•   Limit the consumption of media (TV, Internet, video games, Videos)

•   Intentionally establish rituals that connect family members

•   Create one-on-one time with each family member

•   Be of service as part of wholesome family recreation

Here’s a site to check out some activities to do with the family

http://lds.org/hf/display/0,16783,4231-1,00.html

Resources

¹David C. Dollahite (2000), Strengthening Our Families: An In-Depth Look at the Proclamation on the Family (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft).