Session 6: Family Meetings Practice and Family Jobs

Strengthening Families For The Future

On this page:

• Objectives
• Session Reports
• Introduction and warm-up: Stand up if . . .
• Family meetings review
• Family meetings practice
• Closing Circle

Objectives

At the end of the session, participants will:

• be more comfortable with the format and procedures of family meetings
• have discussed family jobs and learned a strategy for working these out co-operatively
• have practised a family meeting focusing on family jobs.

Session Outline	Minutes	Materials and Handouts
1. Session reports	5
2. Introduction and warm-up: Stand up if...	5	group rules session topics
3. Family meetings review	10	Handout 5B: Family Meetings: Things to Remember flip-chart, markers Handout 6A: Family Meeting Role Play
4. Family meetings practice a. Introduction b. Family meeting rehearsal: Developing a family job chart c. Discussion	a.  5 b. 15 c.  5	b. Handout 6B: Guidelines for Family Job Chart Handout 6C: Family Job Chart Pens or pencils
5. Closing circle	5

1. Session Reports (5 minutes)

Purpose

• to inform the children about what happened in the parent session
• to inform the parents about what happened in the child session

Procedure

• Ask for a volunteer to report what was discussed in the parent session.
• Ask for a volunteer to report what was discussed in the child session.

2. Introduction and warm-up: Stand up if . . .  (5 minutes)

Purpose

• to help participants feel more comfortable in the family session
• to introduce family jobs in a fun way
• to illustrate that people feel differently about certain household jobs

Procedure (Group rules, session topics)

• Have the group rules and session topics displayed on the wall.
• The session leader introduces the topic of the current session.
• With all participants (including group leaders) seated, the session leader introduces the warm-up activity by saying something like:
  • For each of the following statements, stand up if the statement applies to you.

Let’s practise with a couple of statements:

> Stand up if you like pizza.
> Stand up if you brushed your teeth this morning.

• After participants have responded to each statement, they are to sit down again before the next statement is read.
• The following are possible statements:

Stand up if . . .

> you ate breakfast this morning
> you put your breakfast dishes away
> you made your bed this morning
> you cooked dinner last night
> you liked dinner last night
> it’s your job to feed the pet
> you washed dishes in the last week
> you think you do too much housework
> you like cleaning the bathroom
> you’ve ever been told you have a messy room
> you have a pile of dirty clothes lying on the floor of your room
> you have a pile of clean clothes lying on the floor of your room
> you hate dusting
> you like vacuuming or sweeping
> you wish you had a robot to do all the housework.

3. Family meetings review (10 minutes)

Purpose

• to review the purposes and procedures of family meetings
• to demonstrate an example of a family meeting through a role play

Procedure (Handout 5B, Flip-chart, Markers, Handout 6A)

• The session leader explains that in this family session, you will review guidelines for family meetings, and participants will watch a demonstration and will participate in their own family meeting rehearsal.
• Say: Last session we asked you to pick an activity, hold a family meeting and develop a plan for the activity during the meeting. Did anyone do this?
• Referring to Handout 5B: Family Meetings: Things to Remember, ask:
  • What are some suggested guidelines for holding family meetings?
  • What are some suggestions for how family meetings should proceed? What kinds of things should be on the agenda?
• List the responses on the flip-chart. Make sure the list includes the key points from Handout 5B.
• Remind participants that last week, they watched an example of a family meeting in role play. Tell them they will now watch another role play (see Handout 6A: Family Meeting Role Play), which shows how a family meeting with one adult and two young children can proceed.
• Tell them that there are three characters: Mary Anna (aged 9) and Peter (aged 5). The characters may be played by group leaders and/or parent or child volunteers.
• After you have finished, briefly discuss the role play with the participants.

4. Family meetings practice

4a. Introduction (5 minutes)

Purpose

• to introduce the family meeting “rehearsal”
• to introduce the family job chart

Procedure

• Explain to participants that they are going to be rehearsing for their own meeting in today’s session. Say: The focus of today’s meeting will be on developing a plan for completing household tasks, by using a chart.
  • In your meeting rehearsal, you will be using a family jobs chart. Your task is to decide:

> who will be assigned what jobs
> how often these jobs are to be performed
> what reward is appropriate when the tasks are completed.

• Ask the children: What are some of the family jobs that children could do?
• Ask the parents: What are some of the family jobs appropriate for parents?
• Ask participants to keep these jobs in mind as they do the next activity.

4b. Family meeting rehearsal: Developing a family job chart (15 minutes)

Purpose

• to have participants follow the guidelines and hold a family meeting
• to have participants develop a co-operative plan for family jobs within the context of a family meeting

Procedure (Handouts 6B, 6C, 5B, pens or pencils)

• Have participants gather in family groups.
• Distribute Handout 6B: Guidelines for Family Job Chart and Handout 6C: Family Job Chart.
• Summarize again the main points from Handout 5B: Family Meetings: Things to Remember.
• Ask each family to assign two or three household tasks per family member.
• Have families complete Handout 6C.
• Remind participants that the tasks they choose should be suitable for the family member to whom they are assigned.
• Each family member should be given the opportunity to identify what tasks he or she prefers.
• Review the concept of rewards with the group. A reward may be for an individual family member or it may be something for the entire family.
• Suggest that the family meeting is a good time to review how each member feels about his or her tasks, and to make changes to the job chart.

4c. Discussion (5 minutes)

Purpose

• to give participants the opportunity to discuss their family meeting rehearsal and their family job chart

Procedure

• Ask participants for their reaction to the family meeting rehearsal.
• Ask participants for their reaction to the family jobs chart.

*note to group leaders: You may wish to have extra copies of Handout 6C: Family Job Chart available for participants to take home.

5. Closing Circle (5 minutes)

Purpose

• to end the family session on a positive note
• to remind participants of the home activity

Procedure

• Ask participants to gather as families in a circle.
• Ask each person to say which job he or she will be responsible for in the coming week.
• Remind participants to follow up with a family meeting during the week and to involve any additional family members in the family job chart at that time.

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