What Color Was Your Day?

By Kate Cordell, MPH

Like many parents, I often ask my kids, “How was your day?” or, “What did you do today?” But this rarely leads to an engaging conversation about all of the wonderful discoveries, vibrant activities or joyful interactions they experienced that day. Usually I get, “Good.” Sometimes they offer a whole sentence, like “I can’t remember.”

One day, desperate for more colorful conversation around the dinner table, I began a creative questioning approach. The results were way more fun, and it helped me to see the world through my children’s eyes. We have so much fun with this activity as a family that it is now part of our daily routine at dinner time, and the kids enjoy creating their own questions.

Try asking (and answering) these questions with your family—at the dinner table, at bedtime, waiting in line, in the car, or any time you want to reconnect, playfully:

1. What color was your day?
2. What is the silliest thing that you saw today?
3. What superhero power did you wish that you had today?
4. What was the nicest thing that you did for somebody?
5. What surprised you today?
6. What was the nicest thing that somebody said to you?
7. If you were made teacher for the day, what would you have taught the class?
8. If you could design your own playground for recess, what would you put in it?
9. What was the healthiest thing that you ate today?
10. If you could travel back in time to this morning, what would you tell yourself about today?
11. If you were a grownup, how would your day have been different?
12. If you could have given any gift, what gift would you have given someone today?
13. If possible, who would you have traded places with today?
14. What part of your day do you wish your family could have seen?
15. What are you looking forward to tomorrow?

As parents, we often concentrate on what we can teach our children, but there is so much we can learn from listening to them. For instance, when I asked my four-year old son, “What makes you happy?” he answered matter-of-factly, “Nothing. I just be happy.” Now those are words to live by.

Just be happy!

Kate Cordell is a local mom of two who lives in Plumas Lake and works in Sacramento. She moderates MyPromise Kids, a Facebook group which features a Question of the Day (like the creative conversation-starters in this article), plus the opportunity to post your child’s fun, sweet and silly answers.