5 Reasons to Have a Family Game Night

Decades ago, families often spent more quality time together. There were significantly fewer distracting options than there are today, where we now cope with 300 channels on the television, personal computers, and sophisticated video games. Today, family time often takes a back seat to all the other directions that people are pulled, when it comes to work and entertainment. One way to bring back that quality time is to start a dedicated family game night each week.

“There are many benefits to setting aside a night each week as family game night,” explains John Pandiscio, founder of FamilyTimeFun , a company that has created several interactive family games. “Besides the impact of making the family unit so important that you set aside dedicated time together each week, family game night helps in many other ways, as well.”

Here are 5 reasons to have a dedicated family game night:

1.    Quality Time. The importance of spending quality time together as a family cannot be overstated. It is important for bonding, building relationships and improving communication.

2.    Learning Opportunity. Children can learn many important things from family game night. Along with good sportsmanship and the importance of following directions, they can hone their communication skills, as well as testing and improving their agility and coordination skills.

3.    Inexpensive Entertainment. In a day and age when even activities like going out to the movies can be economically out of reach, a family game night is affordable. Games are generally inexpensive, last a long time, and can even be borrowed.

4.    Healthy habits. Having a family game night is healthy. It is good brain exercise, can be good physical exercise (depending on the game being played), and keeps kids from simply sitting in front of the television for hours on end, which has been linked to many negative consequences.

5.    Fun factor. Family game time can be a time when the family has fun and laughs together, each week. That alone will help to create memories and good times!

“Many people may think that it will be difficult to schedule a family game night, but they probably catch several weekly shows on television,” says Pandiscio. “Those shows will never do for you and your family what a family game night can do!”

FamilyTimeFun has created several games that are ideal for family game nights, including Racers Ready, Original Dinner Games, Gather ‘Round Dinner Games and Pizza Night Game. The games have been designed with family quality time and fun in mind. Racers Ready, which will be available beginning in May, promotes agility and coordination as families are encouraged to be active and focus on teambuilding.

FamilyTimeFun games are available online atAmazon.com as well as through select retailers.