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The Family that Plays Together … Game Night Bringing Families Closer By Bonny Osterhage
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n a society where the most common form of communication is texts and e-mails, human interaction is falling by the wayside. It is not uncommon to see families dining in restaurants, all of them plugged in to phones and gadgets, ignoring one another in favor of the person at the other end of their online communications. Perhaps it is this lack of quality family time inspiring many to bring back “family game night,” a time in which they gather to play games where the goal is less about winning and more about reconnecting. “Game nights are a time for us to connect and laugh and just be a family,” says Manda Kelley, mother of Reid, age 12 and Lila, age 9. The Kelleys have a “family game night” once a week during the summer months, and about every other week during the school year. It’s a tradition that began when the children were younger, and Kelley says it serves as a great opportunity to catch up with the children about what’s going on at school or with their friends. “Sometimes things will come out that normally wouldn’t during the run-of-the-mill dinner conversation or after-school chatter,” says Kelley. “It’s amazing how much they will reveal when we are not in the normal roles of Mom and Dad, but just hanging out as friends.”
president of marketing for Hasbro Games, is quoted as saying, “Family game night invites everyone to turn off the outside world for a short time and reconnect with each other.” Still others think spending time in everyday family leisure activities leads to greater emotional bonding within the family. Selena Dominguez, manager of Learning Express, says she has seen a definite increase in the sale of board games recently. “People want to have a good time and be together. This is a more active way to do that than gathering in front of the television.” Mark Lopez, manager of a local Toy Zone, agrees. “We practically sold out of all our games during the holidays,” says Lopez. “It’s nice to see people involved with their kids again, instead of just sticking them in front of a video game.”
It’s In the Cards Research supports what Kelley has discovered. In an article on www.hvparent.com, Matt Collins, vice
Board or Bored? That’s not to say that a family game night cannot include video games. While there is still a place for
Photo by Kelley Ramotowski
March 2013 | OurKidsMagazine.com
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