Epic Conversation Starters for Kids (250+ to Ask)

Looking for conversation starters for kids? Starting a conversation with a child is a great way to get to know them better. But even more than that, it gets them thinking about the future. Getting a child talking about something that they might not have thought of before is a great way to increase their brain activity.

Asking children challenging or intellectual questions can lead to great development. Try a few of these questions below when you’re in the car, at the dinner table, or just when you want to get to know your child or someone else’s child a little better.

My own experience with conversation starters…

Well, here’s the harsh truth… I wasn’t the coolest kid growing up. I had a difficult time connecting with others. I don’t know if it was because I was shy. Or I just didn’t feel like everyone else… Very unclear.

But here’s what did help me… breaking out of my shell a bit. The more I did it, the more I learned about myself and the others around me. Questions like these can help! Trust me!

Here are my best tips before you go asking questions:

Tailor your questions – Sounds simple… Tailor the question you are going to ask based on the person you are asking it to. Doesn’t matter if it’s a friend, crush, guy, girl, Bumble/Tinder match. Look at who they are.
Be yourself – Pick a question that matches you. Don’t just choose any question to try and please the other person. Be yourself… This is what works long-term! Why? Well, when they like you, it’ll be for YOU!

Best and simple convo starters for the little ones!

The very best and simple conversation starters that kids will enjoy:

What’s your favorite joke to tell your friends?
What’s your favorite family tradition?
What’s your favorite chore to do around the house?
What was your favorite movie?
What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?
What’s your favorite food to eat on the weekends?
What’s your favorite candy toe at?
What’s your favorite song to listen to right now?
What time do you fall asleep at night?
What time do you like to wake up in the mornings?
What’s the funniest thing that happened to you this week?
Do you currently have a best friend?
What’s the most embarrassing moment to happen to you at school?
What’s your favorite restaurant to go to with your parents?
Who is a really good friend to you? And why are they good friends?
What’s your favorite toy to play with?
What would it be if you had to eat only one food for the rest of your life?
What’s your favorite vegetable to eat with dinner?
What’s your least favorite vegetable to eat?
Who is your favorite superhero?
What would you do with the money in the entire world if you had all of the money?
Do you think that money is a good thing for our society?
What game do you like to play on the playground the most?
Is there a boy or a girl at school that you are romantically interested in?
Do you secretly have a crush right now? If so, who are they?
Would you rather your friends know every secret about you or you know every secret about them?
What’s the best way to make a really difficult choice in life?

Expert advice: Harvard researchers suggest that the “environment of relationships” is good for children’s brain architecture, which helps to lay the foundation for academic performance, mental health, and general well-being. Building connections with children through questions can help to spark these positive signals in the brain.

Good convo starters for kiddos

Good or great conversation starters that you can ask a kid:

What do you like to do on rainy days?
Do you like to watch channels on YouTube?
What do you like to do on the weekdays?
After school, what’s your favorite thing to do?
Do you ever feel stressed out? What do you do when you do?
Do you think that every grown-up thinks of you as a respectful person?
Do you think that children should respect their elders?
What do you think about ensuring that younger kids don’t listen to explicit music?
Would you rather be a famous movie star or be a famous musician?
Would you rather be known for incredible writing or be known for incredible speeches?
What would you start a YouTube channel about if you were to start a YouTube channel?
What do you think that you’re really good at other children aren’t very good at?
How do you think that parents can get more understanding of their children?
What values do you think children should have in the world?
If you had to let go of one of your favorite stuffed animals, which one would you let go of?
If you had to give one really good gift to your best friend, which friend would you give something to?
What’s the best gift you’ve ever received from someone you know?
If you could change anything in the world, what would you change?
If you had to pick a really unique superhero name, what would your name be?
What’s the silliest thing to happen to you while you were at school?
Do you have any friends who positively influence you and your life?
Do you have any friends who negatively influence you and your life?

Deep starters for children

To get a child thinking deeply about the world around them:

What do you think the purpose of life is?
If you had to describe life in only a few words, which words would you use and why?
Why do you think that most children feel deep emotions?
What’s the funniest face that you can make?
If you had to have only one toy for the rest of your life, which toy would it be and why?
What’s your favorite book to read that makes you feel something special?
When was the last time that you got nervous?
When was the last time that you got really scared?
When was the last time that you were bored on a rainy day?
What do you like to do on a rainy day?
Do you believe in religion right now? If so, what do you believe in?
Do you think that believing in religion is a good thing for people?
Do you think that our world can be a better place?
What do you think about recycling and saving the planet?
Do you value the Earth that we live in?
If you could move to any place on the planet, where would you move to?
Do you think that other kids look up to you about certain things?
What’s your favorite color?
What’s your favorite day of the week?
What are some ways that your parents could be better?
Do you think that team sports are important for kids to be part of?
Which team sports do you want to play now or in the future?
Do you know where you want to go to college already?
What’s your opinion that others don’t seem to share with you?

Expert advice: Children who think about philosophy are more likely to achieve better academic results, according to a study by Stephen Millett and Alan Tapper. These results shouldn’t be shocking to parents or adults, as those who think greater than themselves often widen our perspective on the world and can create significantly more social impact.

Fun conversation starters for the little tikes!

Plain old fun conversation starters that all kids will want to respond to:

When was the last time you were at a friend’s birthday?
Who is the funniest person in your family?
What would your dream job be when you grow up?
How do you listen carefully to the teacher at school?
What’s your favorite school subject?
If you needed to convince your friends to do something, how would you do it?
What’s your most favorite way to have fun with your friends on the weekend?
What activities come to mind when you’re thinking about what you want to do on the weekends?
What’s your least ideal thing to do on the weekends that your parents make you do?
What’s your favorite thing about the season that we’re in right now?
What’s your favorite holiday?
What do your friends want to do when they grow up?
What do your friends like to do on the weekends?
When was the last time that you missed out on doing something fun with your friends?
When was the last time that your feelings got hurt by your parents or your friends?
Who is your favorite person to have conversations with?
What’s your favorite subject to learn about in school?
Do you have a favorite dessert?
Who is your favorite cartoon character?
What’s your favorite outfit to wear to school?
What clothing styles do you have and why did you pick them?
Do you have a favorite TV show?
Who is your favorite teacher at school?
Do you think that children should have good communication skills? If so, how can they improve their overall communication abilities?
What words were really hard for you to learn when you were first learning how to speak?
What subject in school is really confusing to you right now?
Do you like taking tests in school, or would you rather have to write essays?
What was the last book that you read that really shocked you?

Funny conversation starters for kiddies!

Needing a laugh? These funny conversation starters are perfect for kids:

What’s your favorite dinosaur?
Can you play any kind of musical instrument?
What do you think farts would taste like if you could taste them?
Do you want to know what another child thinks?
What kind of superpower would you want to have?
What’s the longest word that you know right now?
Who is the nicest person that you know?
Who is the dumbest person that you know?
What would you think it would taste like if you could taste the rainbow?
If you were stuck on a deserted island, what things would you want to have with you?
If you were stranded in a remote location, how would you look or call for help?
Assume that you only had a few more meals remaining. And you needed to figure out how to feed yourself; what would you do?

Christmas conversation starters for kiddos!

Questions for the best time of the year. Christmas conversation starters for when you want to spark a fun holiday conversation with a little one:

What do you think Santa likes to do on the weekends?
What do you think Santa does for the remainder of the year?
Do you think that Santa would still give toys to kids who “were naughty” just because it’s the right thing to do?
Do you think that Santa builds all of his toys from scratch?
Can we say that the toys that Santa made were “Made in the USA?”
What does your teacher do for Christmas at school?
Would you ever sing in a Christmas choir?
What’s your favorite Christmas song to sing?
What’s your favorite Christmas movie to watch?
What’s your favorite Christmas song to listen to?
What did you ask Santa for this year?
Did you write Santa a letter and put it by the fireplace?

Halloween conversation starters for little guys and girls!

Is it Halloween? Ask a child a good Halloween conversation starter to get to know that little guy or girl a little bit better:

Would you rather spend a night in a haunted house or have to eat rotten eggs?
Have you ever seen a ghost? If so, what did you see, and did it scare you?
When was the last time someone pulled a Halloween prank on you?
What was your favorite Halloween costume of all time?
What do you want to be for Halloween this year or next year?
Who gives out the best candy in the neighborhood?
What is your favorite Halloween candy to eat?
Which Halloween candy gives you a stomach ache?
Where’s your favorite place to go on Halloween?
What makes you most afraid?
Do you like Ghost Busters?
What’s your favorite scary movie to watch during Halloween?
What’s your least favorite prank to get pulled on you during Halloween?
What Halloween costume were you really envious of?
Which friend of yours always has the best Halloween costumes each year?
What does your teacher do for Halloween at school?

Holiday conversation starters for those under 3′ tall!

Ask these holiday questions to get a conversation going with a kid that you know:

What do you appreciate the most about the holidays?
What types of gifts do you like to get other people?
What does your family do during the holidays?
What’s your favorite stuffed animal for the holidays?
What do you like to do the entire day during the holiday?
When was your last favorite holiday?
Are there any people you want to make sure you spend the holidays with?
How can other people “give back” more during the holidays?
What do you value most about spending time with your family during holidays?
Should everyone be giving to charity during the holidays or should they be giving to charity all year long?

Silly conversation starters for young children

Just plain old silly conversation starters for kids:

Are you the class pet in school?
What is your favorite animal?
If you could hear another child’s thoughts, what would it be saying?
What’s your favorite conversation to have at the dinner table?
Why do grown ups always think that they know what to do?
What’s the worst smell you’ve ever smelled?
What do boogers taste like?
What does ear wax taste like to you?
If you could describe yourself in three words, what would they be?
If you could describe your parents in only a few words, which words would you use?
What do you do that’s odd when no one is looking?
How do you think that parents could be “cooler” people?
When you see an older person, how old do they look to you?
What kind of music do you think parents should never listen to?
What’s something that parents do which really embarrasses you?
When was the last time that your mom or dad did something really silly?
Did your mom or dad ever sing you songs before you went to bed?
Did you ever poop or pee your pants as a small child?
What age did you get out of diapers?
Did you ever have trouble learning how to speak when you were a baby?

Winter conversation starters to use

Fun and winter conversation starters for kids:

Do you like to have snowball fights?
What type of snowman do you like to build?
What’s your favorite thing to do when it’s snowing outside?
Do you know how to ice skate?
What kind of ice skates do you have?
Do your parents like to play outside in the snow with you?
What’s the coolest thing you’ve ever done when it’s snowing outside?
What’s your favorite game to play in the winter?
Do you like the winter or do you like the summer better?
If you could travel anywhere during the winter, where would it be?
What’s your favorite thing about cold weather?
What’s your least favorite thing about cold weather?
What type of warm jacket do you own?
Do you know how to ski?
Would you like to learn how to snowboard?
Do you enjoy playing hockey?

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Fact checked:
Board reviewed by Marianne Tomlinson, LCSW (Couples and Family Therapy). Content is rigorously reviewed by a team of qualified and experienced fact checkers. Learn more.

About the author

Ryan Sanderson (LCSW) Ryan is a game and relationship enthusiast who enjoys all things quizzes, games, fun, love, relationships, and family. He's a licensed social worker and helps families, couples, and children in need. He's spoken about love and relationships on Salon.com, Forbes, and Mirror, to name a few.