• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Catholic Review

Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Menu
  • Home
  • News
        • Local News
        • World News
        • Vatican News
        • Obituaries
        • Featured Video
        • En Español
  • Commentary
        • Contributors
          • Bishop Robert Barron
          • George Weigel
          • Question Corner
          • Effie Caldarola
          • John Garvey
          • Father Ed Dougherty, M.M.
          • Guest Commentary
        • CR Columnists
          • Archbishop William E. Lori
          • Rita Buettner
          • Suzanna Molino Singleton
          • Christopher Gunty
          • George Matysek Jr.
          • Paul McMullen
          • Father Joseph Breighner
          • Father Collin Poston
          • Father T. Austin Murphy Jr.
          • Robyn Barberry
          • Hanael Bianchi
          • Amen Columns
  • Entertainment
        • Events
        • Movie Reviews
        • Arts & Culture
        • Books
  • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Our History
        • Meet Our Staff
        • Photos to own
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
  • Advertising
  • CR Radio
  • Printing
  • Subscribe

The three questions you should ask your family every day

Robyn Barberry January 31, 2020
By Robyn Barberry
Filed Under: Blog, Unconditional

Like most families, we keep a packed schedule and don’t get to spend as much quality time together as we like. Despite spending our evenings spread out among various rec centers and the community college, we always make time to share a meal or at least a conversation as a family. After prayers, one of us initiates the “3 Questions” sequence and each person responds. The questions are as follows:

  1. What is something funny that happened to you or that you heard today?
  2. What did you learn today?
  3. What are you looking forward to tomorrow?

Each question serves at least one purpose.

Question 1 is a reminder that there is usually something to smile about at the end of the day. Even on a bad day, a funny story from the school cafeteria or even Facebook can elicit a laugh.  This is also a great way to begin and/or perpetuate family jokes…like the contagious “pizza in the mailbox” joke that my three-year-old started. (I still don’t get it, but I crack up every time!)

Question 2 is a way of educating each other with knowledge gained that day. Children can share what they learned at school and parents show that they are lifelong learners. Sometimes it’s a refresher on U.S. presidents courtesy of my fifth grader and other times it’s a life lesson, like “always eat before you go to a car dealership.” 

Question 3 helps us find out what motivates each member of our family. As parents, this is a crucial part of helping our kids pursue their dreams and, okay, let’s admit it, an effective tool to use to get them to do household chores. When parents share the things that make our jobs exciting, we are showing our kids how important it is to find meaningful work that we (for the most part) enjoy. Kids, in turn, remind us to be happy about simple things, like pajama day (although, that would be nice for grown-ups to have this time of year).

Of course, there are other questions that you could ask, but these are three that tap into our family’s values and are easy enough for our three-year-old to understand. As our children grow, so will the questions. 

For the most part, we ask the questions at dinner, but when our schedules get hectic, we can ask them in the car or before bed. You could perhaps ask them in the morning if that works better for your family, but our house looks like the McCallisters’ leaving for the airport in Home Alone before we start our day.    

Take some time to ask your family these three questions today. You may have a laugh and learn a thing or two about life and the people you share it with.

Print Print

Primary Sidebar

Robyn Barberry

Robyn Barberry

Robyn Barberry is married to her high school sweetheart, Patrick. They are raising four imaginative and adventurous children, one of whom has autism.

Robyn teaches English at Archbishop Curley High School in Baltimore and is a former art and language arts teacher at St. Joan of Arc in Aberdeen, where she worships with her family.

Robyn earned an MFA in creative nonfiction from Goucher College in 2011 and she has been blogging for the Catholic Review since 2012. If she could have dinner with any living person, it would be Pope Francis.

View all posts from this author

Recent Commentary

Reason for celibacy/ Blessing for non-sacramental marriage?

Pandemic Stories (or why there’s a Nerf gun in the tub)

A pandemic Lent, ox cookies, and Valentine’s gifts (7 Quick Takes)

Spiritual millionaires

Do nothing for Lent

Recent Local News

Archdiocese of Baltimore plans ‘Safe Haven Sunday’ to fight pornography

Pasadena parish cites pandemic in decision to close preschool

Father Snouffer, information technology trailblazer for archdiocese, dies at 83

‘Blessing bags’ a focal point for merged St. Casimir Parish during pandemic

Young Mother Lange honoree keeps busy helping others

Catholic Review Radio

CatholicReview · Catholic Review Radio

Footer

Our Vision

Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond.

Our Mission

Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform, teach, inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media.

Contact

Catholic Review
320 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-3150
mail@CatholicReview.org

 

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent

  • Reason for celibacy/ Blessing for non-sacramental marriage?
  • Archdiocese of Baltimore plans ‘Safe Haven Sunday’ to fight pornography
  • Heroes of love: New pathway open for future saints
  • Some English Catholics object to transfer of nun’s remains to Philadelphia
  • Bishops: If passed, Equality Act will ‘discriminate against people of faith
  • Pandemic Stories (or why there’s a Nerf gun in the tub)
  • Cardinal prays on CNN program marking 500,000 COVID-19 deaths in U.S.
  • Pasadena parish cites pandemic in decision to close preschool
  • Father Snouffer, information technology trailblazer for archdiocese, dies at 83
  • Not your grandfather’s — or father’s — Superman

Search

Membership

Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada

Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association

The Associated Church Press

© 2021 CATHOLIC REVIEW MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED