Fun activity to strengthen your child’s decision-making skills

“I must have a prodigious amount of mind; it takes me as much as a week, sometimes, to make it up!”

― Mark Twain

Parents are no stranger to decision-making. They make many decisions on an everyday basis — from their child’s nutrition to the household budget. Decision-making is an important part of growing up, and hence we must teach our children how to make decisions.

In this article, we will cover:

• Benefits Of Involving Children In The Decision-Making Process
• Super Fun Activity To Help Children Practise Decision-Making 

Benefits of involving children in the decision-making process

A book published by Save The Children, Never Too Young: How Young People Can Take Responsibility and Make Decisions, mentions a few benefits of involving children in the decision-making process when the consequences of that decision affect them. They are as follows: 

• Offers children the opportunity to understand and express their opinions, feelings, and needs 
• Assists children in developing life skills such as communication, negotiation, and compromise to create win-win situations
• Help children gain information about possibilities and constraints such as budget and safety
• Strengthens children’s self-esteem as their ideas, feelings, and capabilities are treated with respect

Super fun activity to help children practise decision-making

Earlier, we discussed the benefits of being involved in the decision-making process. Now, we will cover a super-duper fun activity  that can make decision-making fun for children. 

Would you rather?

It is a well-known game that is often played by grown-ups, but can be enjoyed with children as well. In this game, players need to choose one option out of the two equally desired or equally undesirable options. This game can be excellent for exercising children’s decision-making skills in a fun manner as they choose and explain their rationale to everyone. 

Requirements: A list of “Would you rather…?” questions

Parental Involvement: High

Instructions: 

• Pose a “Would you rather…?” question to your child
• Encourage the child to choose one option and explain their reasoning
• Ask probing questions if needed
• Once the child understands how the game is played, take turns asking questions

Sample Questions: 

• Would you rather be short or tall?
• Would you rather control air or water? 
• Would you rather be strong or fast?
• Would you rather be super intelligent or super fun? 
• Would you prefer forever summer or forever winter?

Pro Tip: Ensure that the questions are relatable and age-appropriate. Do not try to persuade the child to choose an option you find desirable. This is simply a fun activity to strengthen their reasoning skills and decision-making in turn. 

This is a simple, fun game that requires little to no preparation and can be played by everyone in the family. You can make it a dinner time tradition where you explore one “Would you rather…?” question a day. This will also give the child something to look forward to on an especially tough day. 

Are you excited to try this out? Do you think your child will enjoy this game? Do share your thoughts in the comments section below. 

Reference:

Miller, J. (2003). Never Too Young: How Young People Can Take Responsibility and Make Decisions. United Kingdom: Save The Children.