The following thoughts on praying the Rosary appear in the “Introduction” of The Seven Day Bible Rosary.  –John Kippley

Variety.  Not only children but also some adults experience restlessness with the rosary, so you may find it helpful to introduce a certain amount of variety into your family rosary.  For example, one week you may want to read everything.  The next week you might omit the meditations.  Another week you may want to spend a few minutes discussing one mystery, read the verses for just that one mystery, and announce only the title, an intention, and a selected Bible verse for the others.

Announce the mystery, read at least one key Bible verse, and state the intention.  This combination will help to keep your mind and heart engaged.

Our Lady’s request. Start the rosary by specifically praying it in response to Mary’s request at Fatima.  For example:

“Dear Blessed Mother, we pray our rosary today for world peace, for the conversion of Russia and for the conversion of sinners throughout the world as at Fatima you asked us to pray.”

In the family rosary setting, that makes it clear to everyone why you are praying the rosary as a family: it is not your idea; it’s our Lady’s.

Prayer intentions. I suggest making several other intentions that are of universal importance—a stop to abortion and contraception, a rebirth of chastity, and authentic reform and renewal within the Church.  Perhaps you will want to pray also for other large-scale intentions such as the conversion of Islam, the conversion of the Jews, peace in the Holy Land and the rest of the Middle East, the missionary work of the Church, the conversion of those who oppose the Church, and the conversion of the nation in which you live.  Then mention your special family intentions and invite each family member to join in—perhaps with at least one prayer of thanksgiving and one of petition.

Our Lady of Fatima never told us that we had to enjoy praying the rosary, and many people who do not really enjoy praying the rosary continue to do so simply because Our Lady told us that if we want peace, we must pray the rosary.  On the other hand, if various techniques can help you or me to pray the rosary with fewer distractions and greater devotion, then let us use them.

I hope that some parents will find this form of the rosary helpful in praying the family rosary with their children.  Perhaps the combination of a wider series of meditations, the scripture verses, and a variety of ways to pray The Seven Day Bible Rosary will prove helpful to children as well as to adults.

It’s also possible that weekly meditation on the importance of priests and their vocation to administer the sacraments and to preach the Word of the Lord may stimulate vocations.  Perhaps weekly reflection on the permanence of marriage may have beneficial long-term effects on Christian married couples.

I make no claim that this form of praying the rosary is “better” than the usual method.  I can say only that it provides more of the events in the life of our Lord for meditation and that some people find it helpful.