31 Questions to ask your kid instead of “How was your day at school?”

I can’t believe we are already in October. We are well into this amazing fall season. How’s the school year going for all you mamas? I love being a stay at home mom to school aged children but I do miss them throughout the day. As a result, every day I am eager to learn all about my children’s day at school. I wait in a long car lane and I can’t wait to see them and find out all that has happened in school that day.

And as they get into the car my 1st question is always the famous, “How was your day at school?” And just about every time I ask that the response is something like “fine” or “good”.  Well, that doesn’t tell me a whole lot, now does it? Please give mama something to work with. I’m genuinely interested in your day. I want to know more, or at least get a full sentence.

Honestly, I think the problem was really mine, not theirs. That question is not really a conversation starter and doesn’t really do much for kids. It’s way too open-ended for them to answer and the question itself is well, boring.

So as an alternative, I’ve compiled a list of questions that my kids will answer with some thought. They aren’t perfect but I do get at least complete sentences for most of the questions. And some of the questions have lead to interesting conversations and hilarious answers. All of which gives me more insight into their school day. Hashtag “mom win” LOL.

31 Questions to ask your kid instead of “How was your day at school?”

1. Who made you smile today?
2. What did you eat for lunch?
3. Tell me something that made you laugh today.
4. What would you rate your day on a scale of 1 to 10? Why?
5. Where do you play the most at recess?
6. When were you the happiest today?
7. When were you bored today?
8. Tell me something you learned about a friend today.
9. What games did you play at recess?
10. Tell me a weird word that you heard today.  (Or something weird that someone said.)
11. When did you feel most proud of yourself today?
12. What word did your teacher say most today?
13. Who do you want to make friends with but haven’t yet? Why not?
14. Did anyone do anything super nice for you?
15. What is your teacher’s most important rule?
16. What is one thing you hope to learn before the school year is over?
17. Who is the funniest person in your class?  Why is he/she so funny?
18. If you had the chance to be the teacher tomorrow, what would you teach the class?
19. What rule was the hardest to follow today?
20. If an alien spaceship came to your class and beamed up someone who would you want them to take?
21. Which person in your class is your exact opposite?
22. If I called your teacher tonight what would she tell me about you?
23. Tell me about three different times you used your pencil today at school.
24. Does anyone in your class have a hard time following the rules?
25. What do you think you should do/learn less of at school?
26. What new fact did you learn today?
27. Who in your class do you think you could be nicer to?
28. If one of your classmates could be the teacher for the day who would you want it to be? Why?
29. What challenged you today?
30. Which one of your teachers would survive a zombie apocalypse? Why?
31. If I were a student in your class, what would I like/dislike the most

Sometimes we just need to figure out new and unique ways to keep engaging with our children. Honestly, some questions may work better for some kids than others. So this is just a few questions to get the ball rolling. I will continue to come up with new ideas and questions because as their mom, I always want to know what is going on in their lives and how I can help them.

Down below me know some questions that you’ve asked your kid that gave you insight into their day?