Research indicates that having regular open dialogue with your children will improve your ability to influence them for good during the teenage years. They feel more comfortable talking about the hard stuff, if talking openly is the norm in the family environment.

Researchers report this is why dinnertime around the table (with the TV off!) is a great indicator of academic and social success in children. Because when sitting around the table (with the TV off!) what better time to shoot the breeze and connect with your family?

You can get your child talking by making it like a game. You can start with the “Sad, Mad, Glad Game.” You ask your child to tell you one thing that made her sad, one thing that made her mad, and one thing that made her glad, during her day. This is a great one for dinnertime.

Another great communication game is the “Two Facts and One Fiction Game.” Tell your children two facts (actual events from your day) and one fiction (one you just made up) and ask them to guess which event is fictional. Then take turns allowing each member of the family to do the same.

Finally, a great idea for getting kids to open up and feel positive, at the start of the day, is to have “Breakfast with Compliments.” Each day, focus on only one family member at the breakfast table, having each family member compliment that one person with at least one genuine compliment. Whether a certain child was the one chosen for the day or not, he will leave for school with a brighter attitude than he might have otherwise.

It’s time to break out the sidewalk chalk, the blocks, and the play foods. The American Academy of Pediatrics states that free play helps children to learn how to make decisions, get along with others, interact with the world around them, build confidence, practice using imagination, and develop hand-eye coordination.

Video games, television, and computer activities are not included in free play. Yet, youngsters spend an average of 4 hours per day in front of a screen. Studies show that television actually puts part of the brain to sleep, as indicated by the measuring of brain waves and activity while watching.

Just imagine if the limit for TV time was cut to an hour, what a child could learn and do in all that extra time. Playing outside is one of the best forms of free play, because it also encourages exercise. Children who play more actively tend to be more active adults.

Free play needs to be unstructured time, meaning that the child directs play. So, even dance class and parent-driven activities, while fun, do not count as free play time. A child needs to be allowed to decide what and how to play, within appropriate limits of course.

Children playing dodge ball together, without a coach or adult calling the shots, is an example of free play. Playing dress up or other forms of role play like pretending to be firefighters or playing house, are also good examples. The important thing is that, while supervised, the children are able to play freely. Encourage healthy free play with toys that stimulate the imagination and require the child to actively use them to have fun.