Boy have things changed. Back in the 80’s, in my early days, holidays were loud. We are a wonderful, boisterous and loving family. And up until about 5 years ago it was those sounds of 10 conversations going on at once all in the same room that made the holidays so wonderful. As with all things, times have changed. Communication is so much different. People still talk, in fact they may talk more because the digital conversations occur simultaneously. As small as our world is becoming, family is still important to talk to. These are the people that know you best, understand your history and will judge with love. Human, face-to-face conversations still evoke emotion better than any emoji. However when smart phones take over the dinner table, interventions need to done. Watch the video below to see how one father got his message across while speaking the language of texting.

So how do you bridge the generation gap?

• Create a writing assignment where the students will need to interview an elder about their childhood or other family traditions
• Using Google Maps or Zee Maps, create an online map to show where you live, where your parents grew up or where the family originally came from
• Interview grandparents about the toys they played with at the students’ age. Students can research those toys and find comparisons to present day toys
• 8 more ways to bridge the generation gap…without texting