If you’ve been following the news in the last few weeks, you’ve heard about the investigations into Facebook and Instagram, including their detrimental impact on pre-teens and teens.

Topics: Family Table Time

“Parents beware—Omegle might just as well be called “Pedophiles R Us,” warned one reviewer on Commonsensemedia.org. “I found out by chance that my (just) 14-year-old daughter has been using this site. Her conversations involve guys asking her for sex and to meet her in hotels for sex.”

Topics: Family Table Time

When children have a sense of purpose, it can help them make smarter choices when it comes to drug and alcohol use. One way to do this is to involve them in activities that let them feel they’re making a difference in the world.

Topics: Family Table Time

“He who wished to secure the good of others has already secured his own.”

Topics: family dinner, Family Table Time, community

The Latin phrase, mens sana in corpore sano, means “healthy mind, healthy body.” Scholars differ about the meaning of this quote from the Roman poet Juvenal, but many take it to mean that you can’t have one without the other.

Topics: Family Table Time

‘Tis the season for giving, the time when we rush around in a frenzy buying presents for friends and family. We also use this time to remember those who are less fortunate than ourselves, and share our good fortune by donating to various charities.

Topics: Family Table Time, season of giving

Two of this month’s Family Table Talk topics are heritage and reading, and we think they complement Thanksgiving perfectly.

Topics: family bonding, family dinner, Family Table Time

Two of the topics featured in this month’s Family Table Talk kit are decision-making and heroism. While they may seem unrelated, they are actually two sides of the same coin, and that is courage: the strength to choose the right decision and the determination to face your fears and move ahead regardless of those fears.

Topics: parents, Family Table Time

One positive outcome of the pandemic has been that families have been forced by circumstances to spend more time together. No more rushing out the door to play practice in one direction and violin lessons in the other. No more late nights at the office, grabbing a quick fast-food dinner on the way home.

Topics: family bonding, family dinner, Family Table Time

National Family Day is on the Fourth Monday of September - that's September 28, 2020 this year. It’s a great opportunity for families to eat dinner together. Watch this 1 in video to learn more about why you should engage in regular family dinners.

Parents are often surprised to hear that something as simple as eating dinner together 4 times a week can reduce the likelihood that their kids will engage risky behavior. Parental engagement is the single most potent weapon in preventing substance use among youth. Check out our Family Days Activity Guide for ideas on how to turn dinner time into something everyone looks forward.

Topics: Family Day, tips, parent involvement, positive parenting, communication, family bonding, children, Informed Families, drug prevention, Family Table Time