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Tell me if this scenario sounds familiar to you: You’re sitting at the dinner table (or somewhere else you like to eat dinner), trying to connect with your kids after a long day. You ask how their day was. “Fine”. O…K… You keep fishing.

Did anything exciting happen? “No”

Did you learn anything new? “Yes”

Aaaaand, queue the crickets. Alrighty then, that was productive. So how do we draw more engagement, along with some REAL answers, out of our kids? I know, it can feel like pulling teeth to get anything more than a “yes” or “no” answer out of them.

So when I agreed to receive a free copy of the Superkids Activity Guide in exchange for some posts and social love, I had no idea the awesomeness I was getting my family into. I mean, this book actually comes with a manifesto:

The Superkids Manifesto

In fact, this is more than just a book. It’s a whole movement focused on better understanding and connection with our kiddos. It is 200 pages of awesome ideas for rocking’ morning routines, mealtime solutions, waiting hacks, learning secrets, incredible play ideas, and nighttime rituals.

But I digress. Immediately I was drawn to the conversation jar page (47) since our after school conversation was seriously lacking.

The premise is super simple. The book gives you awesome sample conversation starters. Write the questions on to jumbo wooden craft sticks. Put them all in a jar. Then have your kiddo pull a stick out of the jar to break the ice and help get a great dinner conversation going.

Craft a Unique Conversation Jar

We decided to take it a step further, and make a couple of fun diy mason jar crafts to hold our conversation starters. The first one only took a couple of minutes to make, and was definitely the less messy of the two.

Pipe Cleaner Mason Jar

A wide-mouth 16oz mason jar worked perfect for this craft. All you need is about 20 pipe cleaners (or chenille stems) of your favorite color. We used striped ones, but glitter would have also been fun.

Then just wrap them around the jar and twist them to stay on. The very bottom pipe cleaner kept sliding off so we used some tacky glue to keep that last one in place.

Since the jar was now so fun and colorful, I used fun colored wood craft sticks for the conversation sticks.

The next jar we made was a little more crafty, a little more messy, and consequently a little more fun to make!

Scrapbook Paper Mason Jar

All you need is:

• Any size of mason jar (this one is a tall 12oz quilted jar)
• Scrapbook paper

• Mod Podge Glue
• Foam Brush

Now rip the scrapbook paper into 1/4-1/2 inch pieces, then use the foam brush to glue them onto the jar.

Once the jar is covered, paint a layer of glue over the top of the scrapbook pieces to seal them in.

Don’t worry if it looks messy when the glue is wet, it will dry clear.

Now you have two fun, unique conversation jars that you can either use for different kiddos, or just spread around the house for whenever the conversation mood strikes.

There are so many more cool ideas in the Superkids Activity Guide. It would make an awesome birthday or Christmas present for kids of all ages.

The next thing we’re making is the Velcro Task Chart. The book has a ton of fun templates that are ready to cut out and make your own creations with.

Hopefully this helps get a little more interaction out of your kiddos when you’re trying to find out how their day went. Sometimes it’s not only about the message, but the delivery of the message. And if the request is coming out of a fun conversation jar they helped make, maybe they’ll be more apt to join in.

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