Holding regular family meetings can help your family establish healthy communication and coping.  Schedule a meeting time every week to discuss what’s going on in one another’s lives, what household chores are assigned to whom, and what family events are coming up. It can also just be a great time for family members to connect and clear the air. You can make it a fun time for everyone; order take-out or let everyone bring his or her favorite food. 

By establishing family meetings, children can better learn the value of communication and see how a group can work together to accomplish tasks and be productive. Invite children to offer solutions to problems and let them give feedback on how they think the household could run more smoothly. Also, establish meeting norms that will teach them helpful job oriented skills, such as taking notes, keeping time, and writing weekly agendas.

Let Children Help with Decisions

Once children are old enough, ask them to help with family decisions. Encourage them to help schedule who should attend to each task, such as who should do the grocery shopping or who should take out the trash. Let them assist you in making the weekly schedule; by letting a child help you, it will show that you trust their judgment and that they’re a valuable part of the team. 

Organize Tasks and Schedules

Let everyone communicate which tasks they would like to do.  Organize tasks accordingly, making sure to do what’s most fair. This will help children learn that effective teamwork can involve compromise. Plan menus and chores and write down schedules and appointments in advance, adding the information to a weekly calendar placed where everyone can see it. Cover any changes to routine schedules at the family meeting. 

Talk About What’s Bothersome

Talk about problems or annoyances within the family. Let children speak freely about anything that is bothering them with the schedule of chores. For instance, if you sense that your child is irritated by having to wash dishes too many nights in a row, invite her to speak about it at the family meeting, and invite her to find an appropriate solution to the problem.

Plan for Fun

Make sure to talk about the fun stuff. Use some of the meeting time to talk about vacation plans or nighttime or weekend events. Ask family members where they would like to go and what they would like to do for family quality time.   Come with creative ideas for accomplishing family goals, i.e. a family change jar to save for a vacation, or family volunteer day once a month to help your community.