Home Chats:
Parents Guide to Healthy Conversations
During the Coronavirus Outbreak
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Eight Free Conversation Starters with Your Kids
As a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic, schools are closed across the country leading to many parents and children having increased time at home together. So how can parents take advantage of this time with their kids? Is there an opportunity to engage kids in the home in meaningful ways? We think so and it is why we created Home Chats as a resource for parents to help open up those opportunities for purposeful family discussions.
Our Home Chats discussion guides are one-page conversation guides to enable you and your kids to discuss and build relevant leadership and life skills. Each Home Chat guide uses a Habitude to teach leadership and build an applicable life skill by utilizing relevant visuals and activities to create a fun way for parents to engage their kids.
There are eight total Home Chat discussion guides as outlined below:
- Home Chat #1: Trains & Tracks – Structure
- Home Chat #2: Hosts & Guests – Intentional Relationships
- Home Chat #3: Trade-Offs – Wise Choices
- Home Chat #4: Fountains & Drains – Positive Attitudes
- Home Chat #5: Homes & Apartments – Ownership
- Home Chat #6: Filter or No Filter – Authenticity
- Home Chat #7: Opportunity Statue – Time Management
- Home Chat #8: Three Buckets – Control
Home Chat #1: Trains & Tracks (Structure)
Think about a train moving along tracks. It would be easy to assume the tracks prevent the train from moving freely, but it’s just the opposite. The tracks give the train focus and direction. A train without tracks is just a disaster waiting to happen. You are just like this train. If you want to move forward you’ll need structures and systems to keep you on track and help you make progress.
Click on the buttons below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more. We’ve also included a bonus Growing Leaders resource for parents with creative and educational activities to try with your kids.
Home Chat #2: Hosts & Guests (Intentional Relationships)
Have you ever been a guest at a party? Then you know that guests don’t have a lot of responsibilities. They might have a few conversations or run into a friend they know, but for the most part, they can just sit back and enjoy the party. Hosts are a different story. A host is responsible for planning, getting food, setting up the venue and even welcoming and introducing guests to others. Hosts take the initiative in relationships. They are intentional about them. You must do this too. You must see yourself as a host, not a guest, in your daily life and go out of your way to connect with others and provide for them.
Click on the button below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more.
Home Chat #3: Trade-Offs (Wise Choices)
Have you ever come to a fork in a road? Once you decide which path to take you have to live with your decision. Every decision is a trade-off. Doing one thing means you can’t do another. It’s an important reminder for life: you can do anything, but you can’t do everything. In deciding what you’ll do, you also choose what not to do. That’s why taking time to make a wise choice is so important.
Click on the button below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more.
Home Chat #4: Fountains or Drains (Positive Attitudes)
Fountains and Drains have two opposite functions: fountains overflow with water while drains remove the water completely. In relationships with others, most people are usually a fountain or a drain — they either flow and overflow onto others, or they just drain people of their energy. My guess is that you’ve probably met both kinds of people. They either refresh the life in others or they dry it up. Driven by a positive attitude, great leaders focus on empowering people rather than exploiting them.
Click on the button below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more.
Home Chat #5: Homes & Apartments (Ownership)
Do you know the difference between homes and apartments? Homes are something you own, and apartments are something you rent. Usually, we change our care of the places we live based on whether or not we own them. This is also true in life. People who treat their life like a home are more intentional and more responsible with their time. Don’t rent your circumstances, own them.
Click on the button below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more.
Home Chat #6: Filter or No Filter (Authenticity)
Have you ever used a filter on social media to take a selfie? Our filters give us the ability to choose which version of ourselves we show the world. Sadly, many people pretend to be something they are not online. No one really knows them. Great leaders are authentic and honest about who they are, both online and offline. Why? Because our level of integrity is the true reflection of who we are.
Click on the button below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more.
Home Chat #7: Opportunity Statue (Time Management)
In ancient Greece, there was a statue called “Opportunity.” The statue had long flowing hair in the front and a bald head in back. Although it was a little strange, it was meant to teach a lesson: opportunity is something you can grab while it’s coming at you, but you can’t catch hold of it after it’s passed. This is why leaders manage opportunities. Everyone has 86,400 seconds each day to use or abuse. If you don’t use your time wisely you can’t get it back once it’s gone.
Click on the button below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more.
Home Chat #8: Three Buckets (Control)
Everything that happens to you in life falls into one of three “buckets:” what is in your control, what is out of your control or what is within your influence. Healthy and emotionally stable people are those who effectively place each life experience in the correct bucket and act accordingly. If the situation is in your control, you must initiate. If the situation is out of your control, you must trust. And if the situation is within your influence, you must respond as you can. The way to stay stable in difficult times is to place each moment in the right bucket.
Click on the button below to download or print the full Home Chat discussion guide including a family lesson, meaningful discussion questions, and more.
Additional Free Content
Scroll down and click on the buttons below to learn more about additional resources for parents designed to help adults connect with and lead today’s teens and young adults.
Tim Elmore’s Vlog Series
In a brand new series of videos, Dr. Tim Elmore shares inspiring stories, tips, and practical advice specifically for adults during the Coronavirus outbreak. Click on the play button on the video to start watching the first video in this series of vlogs or click on the button below to watch all seven videos.
Leading the Next Generation Blog & Podcast
In addition to our Home Chats discussion guides, we wanted to let you know about two additional free resources for parents and others. With over 2,000 blog posts and 100 podcast episodes, our team covers an array of topics including how to help teens navigate social media, parenting styles, anxiety levels in today’s students, leadership tips, and much more. In each podcast episode and blog post, we also provide practical steps and solutions for you to apply the research discussed. We hope you find these as helpful resources as you invest in the emerging generation.
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Learn More About Podcast