Wellbeing 

Some of the Best Questions to Ask Your Child/ren About Their Day at School

Get a sense of your child's life at school by asking questions that elicit more than a one-word response.

One of the wonderful things about sending our child/ren to school is that they get to experience a whole world outside their life at home. Their experiences are educational, of course, but also social. They are experiencing what it’s like to be a part of their school’s culture, to make friends, to connect with teachers, and to change and grow as people.

As parents, we want our children to have these experiences on their own and in their own ways, but we also want as much information as possible about what goes on during their time away from us. We want to know the joys they experienced and the new things they learned.

The trick is to ask about things that are specific, but still open-ended. Move beyond answers that start and finish with "fine" and "nothing" by asking your child/ren to describe his/her world. It's also great to start the conversation with an anecdote from your own day. Try one of these conversation-starters:

1. Tell me about the best part of your day.

2. What was the hardest thing you had to do today?

3. Did any of your classmates do anything funny?

4. Tell me about what you read in class.

5. Who did you play with today? What did you play?

6. Do you think math [or any subject] is too easy or too hard?

7. What's the biggest difference between this year and last year?

8. What rules are different at school than our rules at home? Do you think they're fair?

9. Who did you sit with at lunch?

10. Can you show me something you learned (or did) today?

Donna Allen