40 Fun Interview Questions for Kids on Every Occasion
Whether it’s for their own birthday, the first day of school, Fathers’ Day, or another special occasion, interviewing your kids can capture the moment like nothing else.
It doesn’t matter if this is a tradition you implement each year, or a one-off interview you conduct periodically, asking (and recording) your kid’s answers to a few questions at any moment in time is time well spent.
Read on for some simple ideas for occasions, methods, and ways to document interviews with your kiddos.
When to interview your kids (and ideas for what to ask)
First day of school Interview Questions
The start of a school year is essentially a kid’s New Year’s Day. They’re freshly dressed, new school supplies ready to go, with a brand new year ahead of them.
This is a great time to get them talking about what’s on their mind in the moment.
What are your favorite memories from the summer?
What are you looking forward to this year?
Do you have any goals (academic, sports, personal)?
Who are your best friends?
What do you like most about your friends?
What’s your favorite subject in school?
What’s your least favorite?
What do you think you’re great at?
What do you want to work on this year?
What do you wish you could do that your parents won’t allow?
Last day of school interview questions
Likewise, the last day of school is kind of like a kid’s New Year’s Eve. They’re exhausted, elated, and likely to forget most of what happened that year in the fog of summer.
Use the last day (or the night before) to run through a few questions you may have recorded at the beginning of the year or start a new tradition of wrapping up the year with a little reflection.
Is there a moment or an achievement you’re particularly proud of?
What’s something you worked really hard on this year?
Who was your favorite teacher?
What was your favorite subject?
Is there anything you regret or would do differently?
Was there a time you wanted to give up but didn’t?
Did anything happen that surprised you / something you didn’t see coming?
Do you have a favorite memory from the school year?
Revisit relevant questions from the first day of school.
Interview questions for kids’ birthdays
Kids generally love their birthdays! It’s a day all about them and so they might be more willing to talk about themselves between the cake and the gifts and whatever fun rituals your family uses to celebrate their big day.
What’s your favorite memory from the last year?
What are you most proud of?
What are you looking forward to next year?
What’s something you learned to do over the last year?
Who are your closest friends?
What do you like most about them?
What’s your favorite way to spend your free time?
If you could go anywhere on vacation, where would it be?
What do you most like about yourself?
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Mother’s Day and Father’s Day Interview Questions for little Kids
These questions are particularly sweet when the kids are really little!
Choose a few questions and ask them each year for the first few years. Sometimes their answers are solid gold.
How old is mom/dad?
What’s mom/dad’s favorite food?
What does mom/dad do all day?
What do you like doing with mom/dad the most?
What’s your favorite thing mom/dad does for you?
What makes your mom/dad happy?
What makes mom/dad laugh?
What’s something mom/dad calls you?
How do you know mom/dad loves you?
How to record your kids’ interviews
use Pen and paper to record kids’ interview answers
I like asking the kids to write their answers when they can put pen to paper.
We do this for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and I love seeing the kids’ responses in their own handwriting.
This would work for older kids who can type or dictate their responses, although you might get more traction if you actually conduct the interview yourself and type up their responses!
Use video to interview your kids
If your kids aren’t too camera shy, record them answering the questions on video.
These types of videos aren’t meant for social media - they’re meant to be treasured by your family. I don’t recommend posting them for the world to see given that we don’t know whether our kids will want them “out there” years from now.
However, I do recommend turning your phone so you’re shooting in landscape mode (horizontal video) and choosing a spot to store the videos.
You can upload them to your personal account on a site like Vimeo (and even use a password to protect them). Store them somewhere you’ll be able to easily access and watch them over the years.
Record kids’ interviews digitally
Type up your questions and store their answers on a note on your phone or on a Google doc so you can access them all in one place from year to year.
I would add their responses to the same document so you can easily see them change as you scroll.
Be sure to print a copy or back them up so you’re covered in the event of a digital meltdown!
A note of encouragement
I love traditions, but I’d say I’m a non-traditionalist when it comes to implementing them with our family.
I believe in starting something new when you find something you want to adopt!
And I believe in picking up where you left off if you happen to miss a year or a moment.
You don’t have to have captured every single first day of school in order to start something new now. As I write this, we’re approaching the last day of a momentous school year (hello, Covid!).
Ask your kids a few questions on the next upcoming occasion this year (and the year after that). You’ll be so glad you did.
Remember: It’s never too late to start a new tradition.
It’s never too late to document your memories.
Join me for a free LIVE workshop. I can help you do just that - even if you’re years behind and short on time.
