1. Story Dice Adventure
Roll a set of dice with different pictures or words on them, then take turns creating a story based on what you roll.
2. DIY Time Machine
Use a cardboard box to build a "time machine" and have your kids imagine traveling to different eras. Ask them what they see, hear, and do in each place.
3. Magical Potion Lab
Set up a pretend potion-making station with colored water, baking soda, vinegar, glitter, and other fun ingredients. Let them create their own magical mixtures!
4. Shadow Puppet Theater
Use flashlights and cut-out paper characters to create a shadow puppet show on a blank wall. Let the kids come up with their own storyline.
5. Treasure Map Adventure
Make a treasure map of your house or yard, hiding a small “treasure” for them to find. Let them create their own maps afterward and hide treasures for you!
6. Build a Storybook World
Pick a favorite story and have your kids build a scene from it using LEGOs, clay, or craft materials. Then, encourage them to create their own spin-off adventure.
7. Silly Superhero Day
Ask your kids to invent their own superhero with a unique power, name, and costume. Then, have them act out a heroic adventure!
8. Cardboard Kingdom
Give them a pile of cardboard boxes, markers, and tape, and let them build their own castles, spaceships, or pirate ships.
9. Mystery Object Challenge
Fill a bag with random household items and challenge your kids to come up with creative uses for them. (Example: "This spoon is actually a magic wand!")
10. Backward Day
Flip the day upside-down—wear clothes backward, walk backward, talk backward (or in silly voices), and encourage them to imagine what a world of backward living would be like!
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These activities will not only fuel their imagination but also create great memories with them! Which one do you think your kids would love most?

There is a solution to getting these often direct lessons in a nonfiction book into the minds of your kids through the power of fiction. Generally perceived as entertainment, fiction books can provide the exact same values and lessons you wish your adolescents to pick up on. The genres and stories run the gamut, from what authentic love looks like to Biblical allegories, powerful character traits, epic tales that shine light on deep friendship, heroic feats that teach kids to stand up for what they know is right even in the face of adversity, or telling the truth no matter the consequences.

As an author, I not only look at the theme of my entire series and each individual book when I write, but I also try to provide examples within the details of the characters starring in my stories. Take Oliver for instance: he’s got great leadership skills, he’s strong, he’s confident, and he’s courageous—he’s everything a young man wants to be. But he’s also at times arrogant, quick to anger, impatient to listen, and not willing to work as a team. Oliver needs to be relatable to his readers, but he also has to grow right alongside them. We watch his character develop, and in the end, the readers see traits they wish to embody.

If you think back to the books you loved most growing up—or even now—you’ll probably find in some way you relate to a character, whether through their past, their journey, or who they become. Maybe it’s not that you’re just like them, but they embrace the traits you aspire to have. They may give you the courage to make a change in your life or conquer a fear. What characters in stories have done for you, they can also do for your kids.

When shown through the characters of an exciting adventure or emotional journey, character traits can connect with a reader without making them feel the lesson is being forced upon them. Your kids will find themselves relating their own lives and their own journeys to the characters of the story. Even vast epics like the Lord of the Rings teach character traits your kid will relate to such as you can accomplish things greater than yourself, being wealthy is not the most important thing in life, be honest with others and yourself, be courageous, and size doesn’t matter, having “heart” does.

​And if your kids still resist a fiction book handed to them by you, enlist the help of a cool aunt or uncle, or perhaps an older cousin. Personal recommendations for books go a long way in engaging a reader. Often if someone likeminded has invested in reading a book or series, your kid is more likely to see the investment as worth their own time. ​