Headmaster's Communiqué

Family Dinners Provide More Than Good Food

An article in the April 5, 2006 edition of The New York Times reported that a number of studies show that children who eat dinner with their families regularly are less likely to get involved with drugs and alcohol than those who do not. According to the article, "They also tend to get better grades, exhibit less stress and eat better."

After decades of decline in the simple ritual of family dinners, there is evidence that many families are making the effort to gather at the dinner table. A random nationwide survey by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University found a recent rise in the number of children ages 12 to 17 who said they ate dinner with their families at least five times a week, to 58 percent last year from 47 percent in 1998.

The study by the Columbia center showed that "compared with teenagers who have five or more family dinners a week, those who have two or less are three times as likely to try marijuana, two and half times as likely to smoke cigarettes and one and half times as likely to try alcohol."

Families appear to be working as hard to sit down to dinner together as they do to manage other aspects of their busy schedules. Here are some examples of what schools are suggesting to create quality time together for families:

• Select a night in advance that is free of homework, school meetings and sports practices
• Encourage families to eat dinner together a set night of the week
• If one parent simply cannot make it to the "family dinner," let the others gather for their meal and then take a break from homework when the parent arrives and visit with him or her at the table
• Extend the benefits of dinner together to a family night playing a board game or watching a favorite TV show together and talking about it.

St. Margaret's Episcopal School consistently exceeds the expectations of parents and students. We invite you to visit our campus to discuss your child's education future or email us at school@stmargarets.org.