16 May 2023
With National Families Week upon us, we wanted to focus on the favourite things we like to do with our families, so what better way to find out than to connect with the educators and children at our Dapto 1 campus to find out!
Family… “Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family: Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.” — Jane Howard
Our Achievers had the opportunity to engage in a yarning circle with Educators Chantelle and Cheree to discuss what they love doing with their families. The children sat patiently while waiting their turn to answer the question using their own thoughts and opinions.
The children’s responses showed a clear pattern….
Ayreon: “Play at my home:”
Evie: “Giving them a hug.”
Blaze: “Playing bubbles.”
Colt: “Playing with them.”
Dekota: “I love going to the park.”
Piper: “Going on holidays.”
Bailey: “going to the beach.”
Grace: “Jumping on the trampoline.”
Zahra: “When daddy lets me go inside the pool.”
Lola: “Playing with Lego.”
Leonard: “When we go out for dinner.”
When we get to the core of it all, the children are valuing our time together as families, rather than the material objects we get so caught up in, in this modern world. It was so humbling to know that their little cups are filled when we take the time to just be, play and engage in those simple pleasures together.
I know with my own family and so many others, we sometimes forget to slow down as we rush through the dinner, bath and bed routine each day that we forget to stop and chat about our days. In my household, we have a new routine: we take turns talking about our favourite part of the day. Hearing the moments these little people take out of each day as their favourite is amazing. As a parent, I can honestly say that hearing responses such as “My favourite part of the day was when daddy got home and he gave me a cuddle” is so heart warming. (also a little frustrating when mum has travelled the countryside visiting parks, being a snack lady and playing games with you all day, but no…. dad is all that matters hahaha)
I think we as parents try so hard to be everything for everyone that we put pressure on ourselves to make sure things are fun and exciting, filling our days with adventures and activities, extracurricular sports and lessons and seeing the countryside that we really lose focus of what is important, our time together.
As mentioned on the Raising Children Website, spending time as a family builds foundations for your child’s future. Warm and loving interactions between you and your child develop your child’s confidence, resilience and communication. Your child needs these skills later in life for working through problems, dealing with stress and forming healthy relationships with other people in adolescence and adulthood. Strong attachments and relationships early in life, also mean your child is more likely to have better mental health and fewer behaviour challenges later.
By building a warm, positive and responsive relationship with your child now, you’re helping to shape the adult your child will become and giving them a strong foundation for the rest of their life.
In this ever-increasing expensive world, it can cost an arm and a leg to visit a tourist attraction for a day as a family so we have compiled a list of some great websites with lists of locations to visit as a family that are free!
The Best Free Things To Do With Kids In Sydney In 2022 | URBAN LIST SYDNEY (theurbanlist.com)
Free Things To Do In Sydney – What’s On, Attractions & What To Do
Free Things for Kids to Do in the Illawarra – Parents Guide Illawarra (parents-guide.com.au)
THE 10 BEST Free Things to Do in New South Wales (Updated 2023) (tripadvisor.com.au)
Check out these Instagram accounts on slowing down, connecting with your children and spending quality time as a family:
@kathrynchristi
@connectedparentingau
@bethanyfontaine
@nurturedfirst
Meet the author
Hi, I am Cheree and I am so excited to be contributing to Grove Collective. I hold an Early Childhood Teaching degree and have been in the industry for 18 years and for the last 9 years, I have been lucky enough to work at the Grove in a number of roles. I have a passion for social justice and inclusion and seeing children develop during the first five years, is the most rewarding aspect of my role. With this experience and previous knowledge, I thought I was well prepared for motherhood but when my two boys came along, I spent hours scrolling and looking for advice and information for a range of reasons and to feel like I wasn’t alone in what our family was facing. I look forward to being able to share my knowledge and experience so you too feel supported in your role as parents.
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