Does your family have a focused word?
A focused word is generally a word agreed upon by the members of a family at the beginning of a new year to help guide and encourage the direction of the family during the year.
There’s no right or wrong way to choose your family’s word. Here’s what we’ve found works best.
With paper and writing utensils in hand, gather as a family. Pray and ask the Lord to help you find the right word for the coming year. Then, individually, and as age-appropriateness dictates, brainstorm and write down 10 words that describe how you think the next year should go or what should be the family’s focus.
Words like:
outreach, play, peace, respect, help, pray, explore, build, humble, courage, embrace, mindful, restore, encourage, grace, journey, cultivate, courage, bless, hope, believe, prosper, elevate, balance, focus, grow, simplify, organize, and so on.
Next, narrow your list to about 5 words. Come back together as a family and on a huge sheet of paper, everyone writes down their 5 words. Note any overlap in words which will make the next step easier.
Unless a small group of words is really standing out to everyone, you’ll need to narrow down the choices. To do this, have each person vote for their top 2 words. From this new list, everyone can vote for their favorite word.
With your focused word decided upon, mull it over and talk about it. Does it seem to fit the family? If not, go back and vote again.
Once you have chosen your focused word, write it where all can see. Laminate it, paint it, sharpie marker it! Talk about it frequently during the year. Pray for ways for God to help bring this word to life in your day to day activities and interactions.
This can also be done individually for a personalized focused word for the year.
Has your family chosen a focused word for 2020?
Check out the many wonderful homeschooling resources at Rainbow Resource Center.
