TWENTY QUESTIONS THAT GENERATE GREAT FAMILY DISCUSSIONS

TWENTY QUESTIONS THAT GENERATE GREAT FAMILY DISCUSSIONS

The family that talks together sticks together. If you haven’t had a good dinner-table or around-the-fire conversation in a long time, and aren’t sure you have anything to talk about, try any of the following discussion-starters for learning more about each other and growing closer.

1. If you could do exactly what you wanted for one day, what activities would be on the list?
2. If you could do anything you wanted with the next year of your life, what goals would you set? How can you start on one of those goals this week?
3. What’s your favorite memory? [Even three-year-olds have memories.]
4. What’s your worst memory? What do you wish you had known/done differently?
5. What makes you hurt deeply for others? What gets you really angry? If you could solve just one problem in the world, what would it be and what would you do?
6. What would you most like to learn how to do?
7. What school subject/regular chore feels most useless to you? Why? How might you make it more interesting?
8. What easier ways can you think of for doing one thing that has to be done? What would you rather not have to do at all? What would happen if nobody did it? [Sometimes the answer to that one is: nothing, and we might as well cross it off the list permanently.]
9. What one thing do you admire most about everyone else in this room?
10. Who’s the best friend you ever had? Why?
11. Whom do you admire the most? Why?
12. Who’s someone who’s really helped you? How? Can you do something this week to thank them/do something for them in return? [Be sure to emphasize that it doesn’t matter when the original favor happened. If it seems unlikely the specific person could be located now, add this question: What can you do to pass the favor on/help someone else become like that person?]
13. What’s the craziest thing you ever heard of someone doing for a living? Would you want to do the same thing? Something related to it?
14. Do you have any dreams someone has told you are “impossible”? Did you believe them? Why should you believe them? What can you do about it now?
15. Can you describe the work [someone else in this circle] does most days? [If not, ask that person to describe his or her job. If so, add: Does it look like fun to you? Why or why not?]
16. What’s your favorite food/game/book/etc.? Why?
17. If you could use only one social media site/TV channel/book for a month, which would you choose and why?
18. What would be the hardest thing to give up for one day? Why?
19. If you had to pick a different state/country/time to live in, where would that be and why?
20. If you could be someone besides yourself, who would that be and why? [If someone says, “I wouldn’t want to be anyone else. I like being myself best”—congratulate them and learn from them! In any case and with any starter question, learn all you can from everyone else.]