• Family home evening activities help families grow closer.family image by Linda Mattson from Fotolia.com
  
  Mormons set aside Monday nights to have family home evenings. These nights generally include a lesson and an activity. The lesson can be practical or spiritual in nature. The lesson may be shorter with a longer activity that applies the things that are taught during the lesson. The point of family home evenings is to create an environment where the family draws closer together to make it easy to talk and teach other.
  
  

Back to School Schedules and Goals

• Hold a lesson and family council session to prepare for school. The lesson can include the importance of learning, and you can share a few scriptures that focus on this. Next have each family member set goals for the school year; goals can include earning specific grades, but they may also include completing homework or getting involved in activities. Finally as a family discuss changes in the family schedules. This can include assignment of chores, daily schedules and extracurricular activities. For the activity play a game as a family.
  
  

Family History Night

• A family history night lets children learn about past family members. On family history night, parents can share stories about their ancestors. These stories can go back to the pioneers or they can be more recent. If possible include a photograph of the person or the place where they grew up. You can also show videos of the person if you have any. Next talk to the children about how their personal history can be passed on to upcoming generations. Start a family history where you record funny stories or spiritual events as a family each week or month. Also encourage the entire family to keep a personal journal. For the activity you may have the children create or decorate their own new journals and write for a few minutes about themselves. You can create a journal jar with questions that each family member needs to answer in their journal. These can be questions like a most embarrassing moment or spiritual questions such as sharing a favorite scripture.
  
  

Family Cook Off

• One important principle that Mormon families teach is self-reliance. A family cook-off can teach several aspects of self-reliance while providing a fun background for the practical application of the lessons. Begin by explaining the importance of budgeting and staying within the limits set up. Divide the family into two teams and have a cook-off with the budget. Set a limit in dollars for each team and have members plan, purchase and prepare a three- or four-course meal for the entire family. This activity may take place over two weeks in order to fit everything in, or you can have the evening begin in the late afternoon. Ask grandparents or friends of the family to come at the end of the activity to eat dinner with you and judge the contest.