Family Puzzle Time: How to Make it a Fun Experience

Family time has taken a back seat in recent years as people have been spending more and more time looking at screens, be it a smartphone, a tablet, or a laptop. If you want to change this, you have to find something to do that the whole family will enjoy.

One of the best ways to connect family members is through a jigsaw puzzle, so let’s see how family puzzle time can be made into a fun experience.  

How to Start a Family Puzzle Tradition

Choose a Day

The first thing to do is to choose a day and time to get together and solve the puzzle. This can be difficult as our lives are busy, but surely you can find an hour or so that everyone can put aside. Once you all discover how much fun jigsaw puzzle solving is, you will be keen to have more family puzzle time.

Dedicate a Table for the JIgsaw Puzzle

It’s a good idea to devote a separate table for the jigsaw puzzle. If you are solving a puzzle with at least 1000 pieces, you probably won’t finish it in one day, so you will want to leave it ready to resume solving at the next family puzzle time. If you don’t have a spare table, you could buy a folding table that can be put away when not being used. 

Choose a Theme

It’s not essential to have a theme, but it is a good way to start your jigsaw puzzle journey. It allows you to discuss what each person is interested in and come to a compromise. If members of your family have completely different interests, you can work through each theme in turn. 

Themes your younger children may enjoy, include animals, such as domestic, wild, and farm animals, vehicles like cars, trains and boats, and letters and numbers. 

Older children will probably enjoy film and TV scenes, music stars, and sports, while adults will possibly veer towards art, scenery, and buildings. 

Have Snacks and Drinks on Hand

Children can get restless, so to stop them getting up and wandering into the kitchen looking for snacks and breaking the flow of family time, have some healthy snacks on hand as well as a drink each. 

Healthy snacks include plain popcorn, hummus and vegetable sticks, apple slices with almond butter, baked pumpkin fries, and salsa with homemade tortilla chips.  

Choose the Right Puzzle

When choosing family jigsaw puzzles, you will need to consider the ages of the participants. If you have very young children as well as teenagers, you may have to set up two puzzles. If your table is big enough, set them up next to each other so that it feels that you are a family unit.

So, what are the options?

Young Children

• 50 - 200 piece puzzles. These puzzles will suit 3 - 6 year olds. They are often educational so your children will learn while having fun. Numbers or letters could be the subject matter as well as pictures of animals or birds. 

• Floor puzzles. If you have toddlers, they will enjoy large floor puzzles. You can get down with them and get involved. These puzzles help young children coordinate and control their body movements. 

Older Children and Adults

• 250 - 500 piece puzzles. These puzzles are suitable for pre-teens. Choose puzzles with fairly intricate scenes like landscapes, cartoons, and famous landmarks.

• 1000+ piece puzzles. If you have teenagers, they should be able to cope with 1000-piece puzzles. They will also enjoy more complex images like famous works of art, nature scenes, and abstract designs.

• 3D Puzzles. For families with older children who want even more of a challenge, choose a 3D puzzle. They involve creating structures such as famous buildings, vehicles, and fairground rides. Robotime has a fantastic selection of 3D puzzles, which includes a working clock. 

What Are the Benefits of Family Puzzle Time?

Strengthens Family Relationships

Time Spent Together

One of the most notable benefits of family time puzzles is the opportunity to spend time with your family. You can strengthen the relationships you have with your children and they with you. If you are enjoying yourself, you will get closer to the rest of your family, especially as you now have something in common.

Develops Bonds Through All Generations

People of all ages can enjoy jigsaw puzzles, so it is the ideal activity for an extended family. At a family gathering like Christmas, instead of sitting in front of the television, get out a jigsaw puzzle. 

Children, their parents, their grandparents, and maybe even great-grandparents can all take part in family puzzle time. It helps to bridge age gaps as everybody gets involved and contributes to the final result.

Lessens Screen Time

Most of us are guilty of spending too much time in front of a screen and forgetting about talking to other family members. Family puzzle time will encourage us to slow down and enjoy ourselves with the rest of the family, without the need for technology. 

It’s a good idea for everybody to leave their smartphones in another room so you aren’t tempted to use them. Children and teenagers may object at first but they will soon forget about their phones when they are having fun.

Promotes Cooperation

Learn to Work as a Team

You can’t work on a jigsaw puzzle with other people without working as a team. You will have to talk strategies together with the rest of your family. This encourages communication, something that may be lacking in your everyday life. 

You may, for example, have different ideas on how to start the puzzle. Somebody may want to look for patterns while others will want to find the edge pieces first. You will need to put forward why you want to start in a particular way. Then all options will have to be discussed and a solution reached. 

You will have to learn not to be upset if your strategy isn’t accepted. This is all part of being in a team and can strengthen your relationships with the rest of your family. 

Learn to Resolve Conflicts and Problems Together

You and other members of the family may not agree on how to approach family puzzle time. You will need to learn to listen to others in the group and respect other people's ideas. You will also have to work together to find a compromise. This is particularly beneficial for the younger members of the family. 

Improves Mental Health

Relieves Stress

If you’ve had a hard day at work, you will need time to recharge your batteries. Sitting in front of the television and listening to the news, which can be bad, is not advisable. Relax with your family and concentrate on solving a puzzle instead. It will calm you down and reduce anxiety, giving you a break from any worries you may have. 

Completing a puzzle will make you feel as if you have achieved something. This will help with any mental health problems you might have. 

Solving Jigsaw Puzzles Builds Confidence

Family puzzle time is particularly beneficial for children and teenagers as it concentrates their minds on one task. Perhaps they aren’t good at focusing on one thing at a time and this will help them to concentrate.

It will also teach children patience as a puzzle isn’t completed in just a few minutes. They may come across problems and they will have to learn how to deal with them and carry on calmly.

You will all have a sense of achievement when you have finished the puzzle, especially if it has been a particularly tricky one. This is likely to lead to everyone wanting to book another date for puzzle time with the family.  

Teaches Life Skills

Jigsaw puzzles are a great way to educate younger members of your family. It will teach them spatial awareness, helping them to understand shapes, sizes, and positions as well as being able to view things from different perspectives. It will also introduce them to problem-solving. 

When it comes to you, particularly if you are retired, it will keep your mind focused and active. 

Increases Cognitive Skills

Learn How to Pay Attention to Detail

Jigsaw puzzles are often intricate with different shaped pieces and a myriad of colors. Sometimes, however, you might have many pieces of very similar colors, for example, if you are solving a puzzle with the sky in it. You will have to take heed of the little differences in the colors. All this helps you to develop your observation skills. 

 Improves Your Memory

Solving puzzles helps improve brain function. You have to remember colors and shapes while doing the puzzle, increasing your cognitive skills. 

Boosts Creativity

You may wonder why doing a family jigsaw puzzle enhances creativity. It is because you have to imagine the final picture and how the pieces fit together. Puzzling with your family brings a unique approach to the puzzle with everyone bringing their own ideas to the table.  

Family Time Puzzles Help You to Appreciate Art, Nature, and History

You can purchase many jigsaw puzzles with images of artwork and nature which can give you an appreciation of art. It can lead to conversations about the images and the artists who originally painted them. 

There are other puzzles which depict historical occurrences. This can inspire you to tell your children more about the events that happened. Kids may enjoy learning by doing puzzles rather than sitting at a desk. 

Solving a Puzzle as a Family Gives You a Feeling of Achievement

When you finish the puzzle, you should feel pleased with yourself as you have accomplished your goal. This is magnified if you solve the puzzle as a family. It unites you as a group and strengthens the importance of working as a team. 

Perhaps celebrate with a treat such as sharing a box of chocolates or having a special family meal. This will create good memories of puzzling as a family and encourage you to do it again. 

How to Make Family Jigsaw Time Fun

• Set Goals. To keep everybody motivated, set goals, such as finishing part of the puzzle by a certain time. This will motivate everybody to reach the goal. You can celebrate with small treats if you are successful.

• Take Turns. Let everybody have a turn in making decisions. This will involve the whole family and nobody will feel left out and perhaps lose interest. It also enforces teamwork. 

• Advocate Positive Reinforcement. You should support each other and congratulate those who are successful. This will bond you as a group and create a positive mood.

• Keep the Atmosphere Lighthearted. You don’t want to get too serious as this will decrease the fun element. Although you want to solve the puzzle, you want to enjoy yourselves. Take a break if things get difficult and return with a new outlook. 

Great Family Time Puzzles From Robotime

Robotime specializes in 3D jigsaw puzzles. You can find puzzles to suit many tastes. If your family is split on what they want to do, alternate the puzzles so that everybody gets a choice. 

Train enthusiasts will enjoy the Rolife Steam Journey: Rolife Steam Journey DIY Wooden 3D Puzzle TGS01 | Robotime Online. It is highly likely that everybody will enjoy the ROKR 3D pinball machine which works once you have solved the puzzle: ROKR 3D Pinball Machine 3D Wooden Puzzle | Pinball Game | Robotime

There are also clocks and musical boxes that work, fairground rides, and bouquets of flowers, amongst other exciting 3D puzzles. 

Robotime also makes a selection of 2D 1000-piece puzzles which have beautiful scenes such as the Covent Garden in London and the Amalfi Coast. These will suit older children and adults. Young teenagers will enjoy the Rolife Doggie Art Gallery: Rolife Doggie Art Gallery 1000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle PT008 | Robotime  

Final Thoughts

Family puzzle time is a great experience for young and old alike. It can unite a family and encourage them to work as a team with a specific goal in mind. Why not set aside an hour or two each week to enjoy time with your family solving one of Robotime’s jigsaw puzzles.