While popcorn and watching a movie at home can be fun, it doesn’t promote family bonding the same way unplugged bonding would. However, getting your family to unplug from their various devices can create resentment if not handled right.
In the interest in keeping the peace and making family bonding fun, here are some suggestions you can implement with your own family.
Discuss And Agree As A Family
There’s nothing like setting up arbitrary rules on your own that will get not just your children rebelling but also create problems with your spouse for making decisions without their input.
You will want to go over your concerns and goals with your spouse before you bring all the children into the discussion, since a united front is key to successfully implementing unplugged time. After you two have conferred, call a family meeting and discuss your joint concerns with your children.
Electronic-less Vacation
A good family vacation without vacation can be a great way to show your family that they can have fun without screen time and ease them into unplugging more often.
You can use tech to help you reach your destination, but it may not be a bad idea to do things the old-fashioned way. So instead of a GPS, you can use physical maps and teach your children how to navigate their location from one.
Some vacation ideas that naturally allow for less tech are:
- Camping
- Museum explorations
- Walking tours
- Beach/Lake trips
However, you don’t have to leave your home to get everyone away from their tech.
Unplugging At Home
There are many ways you can help your family unplug from their devices and bond while at home. Some of the best ways are:
- Set regular unplug times - Maybe it’s a daily activity like no tech during dinner or just a weekly clear zone with no electronics until after noon on Saturday, with the early morning dedicated to family time. Either way, having a schedule to follow will make it easier to implement unplugged time.
- Craft together - Whether it’s breaking out the paint supplies or making a puzzle, bringing the family together in a creative activity will promote bonding. Also, without any screen to distract from each other, your family can get creative and converse naturally while not feeling like they need to do something with their hands.
- Explore your town - Whether you live in a city or a more rural area, there are things to see and places to be. Take your family and check out the history of your area, what services you may not know about, volunteer locally, and have everyone get more involved with where they are, not where they are surfing the web.
If further steps are needed to help bring straying family member together, Liahona Academy is here to lend a hand and help troubled boys both unplug from bad habits and re-engage with their families.
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