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Abstract

The types and kinds of leisure services provided in a community are strongly influenced by the changes in the structure of families. The traditional nuclear family is now in the minority; one in six children live in a single parent family; delinquency rates among children ages 10 to 17 have increased 130 percent since 1960; over the past 25 years, the divorce rate has tripled; and in the wake of divorce, the standard of living of the ex-wife falls by 73 percent, while that of the ex-husband rises by 42 percent. There are gay parents; cultural differences are the rule; childless marriages; latch-key kids, yuppies giving way to Ultras (Ultraconsumers); stress and competition; the graying of our population and AIDS, human sexuality and promiscuity. Although more men are pitching in with domestic chores-, there are still 22 million women in America who return home after an eight-hour day bringing the house up to health standards.

One of the first tenets of program planning is to start where the potential participants are, at their level and lifestyle. The concepts on which most family recreation programs are based today have been outdated by social and constitutional changes.

Many specific recreation program suggestions are offered to meet the needs of today's families including: high adventure, music, drama, service, camping/nature/interpretation, dance, clubs/hobbies/collecting, arts/crafts, mobility type programs, sports/games/aquatics, special days/holidays, building traditions, mental/language, social and food related activities and experiences.

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