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The New Year is filled with promises and the possibilities seem endless. However, before we begin to chase down the promises of the new year, it’s probably a good idea to reflect on the previous year to see what worked and what didn’t.
This year my focus is on strengthening my family. My oldest starts middle school next year and I know that at this age, kids tend to want to listen to their friends as opposed to their uncool and outdated parents.
This is why this year our goal is to put a great deal of focus on nurturing our family. In order to take stock of how our family is doing and what areas need improvement, we sat down and answered these reflection questions. The process was amazing and provided so much insight into what our family’s strengths and weaknesses are.
I’ve compiled a list of family reflection questions below and I truly hope that your family finds this exercise useful! Happy New Year!
1. What was an important lesson you learned from your family this year?
2. What did your family accomplish this year that you are most proud of?
3. What was the biggest disappointment for your family this year?
4. What do you wish you had done more of as a family this past year?
5. What are you most grateful for this past year?
6. Pick three words to describe this past year with your family.
7. What was your favorite family vacation?
8. What do you want your family to do differently next year?
9. What are some things your family did right that you want to continue in the New Year?
10. What obstacles did your family face this past year?
11. What is your favorite memory from this past year of spending time with your family?
12. What did your family do this year that they have never done before?
13. How was your family supportive this past year?
14. How can your family be more supportive in the New Year?
15. What does your family need to do more of in the New Year?
16. What does your family need to do less of in the New Year?
17. How did you treat family members this last year?
18. How can you improve your relationships with family members in the New Year?
19. What did you do this year with your family that you will remember for the rest of your life?
20. What did you love most about being in your family this past year?
Download 20 Reflection Questions and 20 Reflection Cards as a free PDF!
How to Use Reflection Sheet and Reflection Cards
Both the Reflection Sheet and Reflection Cards have the same questions. I like to complete the reflection sheet with the family because that way every member gets to hear each others’ perspective on how the year went. Plus it gives me a chance to remember activities and experiences I forgot about.
The reflection cards are great because you can make a game out of it. Place the cards in a hat, be festive and make it a ‘Happy New Years’ hat, then go around in a circle and have each family member pick a card to answer.
You can even use the answers from your reflection sheet to guide the family goals the family comes up with. We’ll talk more about making family goals and how to build a family legacy in the upcoming Kiddie Matters’ blog series, How To Create A Family Legacy Plan.
Hope you enjoyed! Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!!
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Ana De- Jesus says
This is important to reflect on family and what it means to you. I like all the questions that you have listed this would be great.
Claire says
I was intrigued when I saw this post on Facebook – it’s a great idea. Family time is so important and this sounds great as everyone has a say and will be listened to x
Di says
Love this! What a great list of questions to reflect on the year past and the year ahead! Definitely printing these out. Thanks!
Michelle @ Sunshine and Hurricanes.com says
This is such a great family activity! I love how easy you’ve made it to be purposeful at the start of the year and really focus your family for 2016!
Stacey says
What a great idea! We will be having a quiet night New Year’s Eve with the kiddos. I think this list will inspire a great dinner conversation. Thank you!
jill conyers says
What a great way to promote family conversations and family time in general. Love it!
Roxanne says
This is a great idea! It’s the perfect time of year to look back and reflect. I love your list of questions too!
Sandra - The Foodie Affair says
These are some great thought provoking questions to share with family! Thanks for putting these in a PDF!
Yanique Chambers says
Thank you and you’re welcome!!
Mardene Carr says
Great questions for lots of family fun and interaction
tara pittman says
My son made something like this at school. He put them in a jar for dinner conversations.
Angela at Daysinbed says
This is a good set of questions. Thanks for sharing and good luck to you and your family for 2016. Angela
Kelly B. says
This is a great idea! I think it’s so important to reflect on the past and learn how to strengthen yourself and your family for a new year!
laci says
Love this I saved this post to pull out tomm when we are relaxing yay !! Thanks
melandria romero says
just having each other means a lot to me, we never got the chance to ask questions or reflect the things we have done but we always look forward to a new happening whether it was good or sad because it makes us who we are.
R U S S says
This is good practice at home. It encourages a reflective attitude which would teach kids the importance of having a grateful attitude and the value of setting goals and making improvements in one’s life.
michelle says
this is a great & helpful list of reflection questions to help us figure out what might need adjusting to make 2016 a great year.
Elizabeth O. says
Having a talk like this with your kids is definitely nice. It also helps you keep track of their developments. Thanks for this awesome reflection list. I shall do this as well.
Claudette says
A wonderful idea! Thanks for sharing it.
Amber NElson says
Those are great questions to stir up some conversation with the family!
Angie Scheie says
Great questions to discuss with your family on New Years! Pinning!
Eileen says
family time and reflection is so important
Bismah says
Wonderful idea! It is so important for families to look back on events to encourage communication. It also brings families closer together and strengthens relations.
Marielle Altenor says
I love this. I was able to answer a few of these and felt really proud on all the amazing thing my family and I were able to accomplish this year! Wishing you a Happy New Year!
Debra says
I absolutely love this! This is such a good way to set the new year up to be better than the last one. What a great idea!
Shannon Gurnee says
I love these ideas for topics you can talk about with your family! Hope you had a Happy New Year!
CourtneyLynne says
Love this!!! We just made a family vision board yesterday!! Definitely making sure 2016 is a great one 🙂
stacey says
Just wanted to tell you that this list sparked a great family discussion just now as we are spending hours in the car together driving home after vacation. Thank you!
nicole says
This is very nice. I love to speak to me kids about their plans, its so important.
shweta jain says
Great ideas and a good way to make new year better.
Jenny says
Great questions! I would love to hear my family’s answers to these. I bet we wouldn’t all have the same answer.
Jenn says
What awesome questions! I am totally going to use these! Thank you for sharing!
Kim @ This Ole Mom says
Thank you for sharing Yanique! I love these questions. I think I’ll do this with my little boy.