Family Fun Magazine Review

I was given a one year gift subscription to Family Fun Magazine for Christmas about three years ago. It was given to me by my sister-in-law, and at the time, I thought, it was nice, but doubted I needed another activity magazine subscription. Little did I know how addicted to Family Fun I was about to become.

I had been a preschool teacher and daycare provider for about seven years at the time I was given my Family Fun subscription, so I already had at my disposal a plethora of books and magazines with fun and interesting children's activities and expert advice and information. I expected Family Fun to be more of the same. I was very pleasantly surprised how wrong I was, and wondered why not more of us knew about the magazine, published in nearby Northampton, Massachusetts, owned by the Disney Corporation.

What sets Family Fun apart from the rest is that it is not just researched and regurgitated activities and advice. The staff of family fun works tirelessly every month to develop new, fun activities with a family budget in mind. Craft supplies are always economically priced, and often items are used that are laying around the house or can be recycled.

Each month Family Fun magazine features new, delicious, kid-friendly recipes and cake and cookie decorating ideas. Most of my favorite recent recipe additions and party plans have included suggestions from Family Fun. I frequently look to Family Fun before any other resource when I'm planning a get-together or party.

Family Fun frequently runs features detailing family friendly places to travel and fun destinations for children (what else would you expect from Disney?), but the Disney-owned magazine is not just one big advertisement for Disney. Travel articles cover a wide variety of destinations across the United States.

Much, in fact the majority, of the advice and information in Family Fun magazine comes from real parents and families, including a Family Fun focus group. Each month the magazine features 'My Great Idea', an area of the magazine where readers submit helpful hints, parenting strategies and solutions to everyday family life problems. Published readers are paid $100 for their submissions.

In addition to the more formal idea section, readers are encouraged to write to Family Fun with their praises and criticisms of previously published articles, and to submit photos of completed Family Fun activities for a chance to get their pictures in the 'Mailbox' section of the magazine.

Family Fun, which is obviously marketed to families with children, is a fantastic resource for parents for everything from real-world advice, to home decorating, to science projects, however, Family Fun is not just for parents. The advice, recipes, and activities are equally useful for grandparents, aunts, uncles, educators, and anyone who enjoys spending time with young children. As an Early Childhood professional, I turned to Family Fun and their resources more often than many of the magazines published expressly for my profession. I found Family Fun's activities to be more in line with the slim budget of a daycare center, not to mention fresh, original, and fun!

Family Fun is also available on the web where they post more fun activities and printables, and where archived articles and recipes are available. You can access the Family Fun website at www.familyfun.com.