Dinnertime Lessons

Every evening, at the dinner table, we talk about our day.  We circle the table asking what their favourite and least favourite part of their day.  I came up with this when Grace began school and have found it to be enlightening.  Grace doesn't always say very much after school about her day.  She is focussed on the future and chats about what is going to happen.  Alex comes off the bus starving so after his dash to the house to scour our pantry he begins to talk about his day.  Both Grace and Alex don't really answer a lot of my questions about their day but Alex will just spill the beans as the evening progresses.  Jean is still a mystery.  She doesn't really talk about her day until bedtime when we find her role playing or chatting with herself in her room about the day's events.  Therefore dinnertime is my favourite time of the day (once the food is one the table... it is hectic until then) when we can talk about some of the good things and bad things that go into making a school day.  Sometimes we are surprised by their answers.  Sometimes we learn new things about them such as what they are doing at recess.  Today we learned that Alex is playing soccer at recess with his buddies and I'm happy about that.  He loves sports and the start of this school year has been a challenge with some of his friends.  I am so glad he is finding something fun to do at recess.  Jean always wants her turn telling us what she liked and didn't like about her day so that is really the only time we learn anything from her.  In regards to Grace, well, she isn't loving school as much as she used to.  I'm not really sure why but by having these dinnertime discussions, I'm sure we will figure it out.  We are learning that listening to our children is important but getting them to talk is sometimes even more important and can be difficult.  This is one way that works in our household. 
It makes the chaos of putting a meal on the table worthwhile.  I wouldn't trade it for anything.