In the grand scheme of childhood, sometimes it’s the little traditions that stand out the most. In our house, we have pancakes on Saturday mornings, we do family game night on Sundays, and on Fridays, we have afternoon tea.
We started enjoying teatime about four years ago, and except for a few weeks when we’ve gone out of town, we have religiously sat down for tea each week.
When we do things over and over again, we are showing our children that these things matter to our family. Besides the big holidays, it’s the little traditions that paint the picture of what matters the most. When we start a tradition that celebrates coming together for conversation and laughter, we’re making sure our children know that they are seen, heard, and loved.
In our house, we marry tea (and sometimes other beverages) with poetry and great books for our weekly tea time. The concept of poetry teatime is popular among homeschool families, but it can absolutely be a wonderful part of any family’s week, whether you have toddlers and preschoolers at home or kids in school.
It’s funny that afternoon tea sounds so fancy to us Americans, yet the British do this every single day! We can take a cue from our friends across the pond and make teatime accessible, family friendly, and a no-stress zone.
The Basics of Teatime
- Set a date. Pick a date and put it on the calendar. You might do tea once this summer or decide to make it a regular occurrence and try it monthly or weekly.
- Set the table. We like to use a tablecloth because it feels fancy. My kids usually go pick some “wildflowers” (aka weeds) from the backyard and put them in a mason jar for a centerpiece. We light a candle because everyone behaves better when there is a risk of burning your hair or the house down. We use real china, gifted to us or purchased second-hand so there are no tears if something breaks.
- Gather books. We usually choose two or three poetry books and a book that we’re currently reading aloud as a family. Each child browses through poetry books and picks one poem to share. Even little ones who can’t read yet love to find their poems and have me read it aloud.
- Prep the tea and snacks. Yes, it’s called teatime and usually, tea is the star of the show, but we also love to switch it up and do hot cocoa in the winter or lemonade in the summer. We also can’t have teatime without snacks! Snacks can be as simple as cut fruit, or you can get fancy with scones or muffins.
- Enjoy a lovely afternoon. Teatime with little kids isn’t all prim and proper, and that’s OK! Embrace the chaos, have fun with it, and know that the value of traditions like these doesn’t come from explaining things or doing things right; the value comes from simply doing them.
Poetry Books for Children
I was excited to find a few poetry books saved from my childhood that my kids get to enjoy too. We’ve also added to our collection over time by shopping library book sales and thrift stores.
A few favorite poetry collections we love:
- A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson
- Favorite Poems Old and New: Selected for Boys and Girls by Helen Ferris
- When We Were Very Young by A.A. Milne
- Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
- Side by Side: Poems to Read Together by Lee Bennett Hopkins
- Sing a Song of Seasons: A Nature Poem for Every Day of the Year by Nosy Crow
And a few more books of poetry that are fun, lighthearted, and sure to please boys and girls with sweet, silly poetry:
- Be Glad Your Nose Is On Your Face and Other Poems by Jack Prelutsky
- Poetree by Shauna LaVoy Reynolds
- Hi, Koo! A Year of Seasons by Jon J. Muth
- Revolting Rhymes by Roald Dahl
- The Armpit of Doom: Funny Poems for Kids by Kenn Nesbitt
Our weekly teatime is more than just tea, snacks, and poetry. It’s a time to slow down from the busyness of life and focus on what matters the most.
We love to embrace the season and decorate our table in seasonal themes, but mostly we sit and indulge in a beautiful language that inspires deep conversations. When we enjoy tea with our children, we are gifting them our time and our presence, two of the greatest gifts we could ever give them.
Our family comes together for tea each week, but your family might find a different way to foster connection and conversation. Whatever it is, embrace these little traditions and enjoy them as a family because they are what will be rooted in our children’s hearts forever.
