Try These Games and Activities at the Dinner Table

We know that family meals can be a great time to strengthen bonds, improve communication skills, and learn about healthy eating habits together. Here are some dinner table games and activities that your family can do to make dinnertime even more special!

Make a conversation jar.

At the beginning of the week, have each family member write 3-5 questions on strips of paper and place them in a jar. The questions can be anything! If your child cannot write independently, help them write their question. Every night, pull out a few questions and take turns answering.

Do Trivia.

There are so many ways to have fun with trivia with your family! You can look up trivia about general topics (food, animals, sports, etc.), or you can even make up your own questions and try to stump each other! If you’d like to make it a competition, keep track of points and name a winner at the end of the week.

Create a family story.

Every night, spend 5-10 minutes making up a story together as a family. You can either take turns making up the story each night, or try to make up something together. If you’d like, write down or illustrate the story once it’s complete.

Draw on the dinner table!

Without damaging the table, of course. Cover the dinner table in a large sheet of paper. Use markers or crayons to draw and write on the table. Discuss what you’re drawing, play games like tic-tac-toe, and just have fun!

Educate your children through new foods.

Experience new tastes and meals by getting adventurous with what you eat for dinner. Tell your children the story of the dish or foods, and what meaning it has to you and your family. You can even all try something together for the first time!

Guess the dish.

If your child is old enough to eat independently, this is a fun way to make dinner a surprise. Have them cover their eyes at the dinner table, and guess what’s for dinner using their other senses (smell, touch, taste). This is a great way to have children play with their food using their senses.

Let the kids cook.

If your children are old enough to help out in the kitchen, have them make dinner! Enjoy the meal together and discuss why they chose to make what they did. Here are some ways kids can help in the kitchen.

Don’t let the fun stop after dinner! 

We have tips for choosing the perfect game for a family game night!

Enjoy good food and make great family memories with these dinner table games!

Want to learn more about baby’s development and track their milestones?

Download the FREE Pathways.org Baby Milestones App!