In today’s fast moving world everyone is struggling to meet their daily schedules. As a result it becomes even more difficult to spend time with our parents. It is very important to realize that our children also need to spend time with their grandparents. Grandparents are wonderful fun loving people. The relationship that grandparents share with their grandchildren is unique. It is filled with love, mutual admiration and many other things. In this post we talk in depth about Why Children Need Grandparents.
Today, we live in nuclear families which have very tight schedules. So spending time with our parents is not the first thing on anyone’s agenda. But its time we make a conscious effort to make our children spend time with their grandparents. Spending time with grandparents plays an important role in developing the character and personality of a child. These moments should not be once a year or during an extended family union but should be more frequent.
Why Children Need Grandparents
Here are the top 7 reasons Why Children Need Grandparents
1. Grandparents have unconditional love and affection towards their grandchildren.
Grandparents are unconditional in their love and affection towards their grandchildren. There are many times when as parents run out of patience due to our children’s tantrums. During these times grandparents are a great source of strength and support.
Remember children need to be corrected and they respond to correction only when it is given by people who love them the most. Grandparents always shower children with love and affection, when we as parents are being firm with them. This extra attention from them helps the child to become more responsive and listen to the advice.
When parents are firm and strong in their effort to discipline their children, it affects the child. The child needs someone to fall back on, to just cry, whine and complain. Grandparents fill in this gap very well. With years of wisdom and experience, they know when to listen to the whining and complaining and when to give advice.
Research has indicated that the extra love and correction that grandparents shower on their grandchildren help them to be more responsible and not become spoilt. This unconditional love helps in transforming children into responsible adults in the future. Thus grandparents share the burden of good parenting with us. The communication gap between you and your children can be filled in by a grandparent.
2. GrandParents teach ethics and moral values.
Teaching ethics and values has become a challenging task for most parents of this generation. With the heavy onslaught of technology, gadgets and violent movies, children tend to imitate and absorb all the wrong values. Every parent wants their child to behave in a good and appropriate manner.
The values that grandparents teach are more deep and profound. Their years of wisdom and experience enables them to teach the right values in a correct manner. They take the help of stories, amusing anecdotes, simple talks, songs and various other things to make their point. The more time children spend with their grandparents, the more valuable life lesson they will learn from them.
3. Grandparents help in increasing the bond by sharing family history.
Grandparents have a unique treasure of knowing all the family stories and family history. They help their grandchildren to learn about their heritage, from where they belong, the struggles and successes of the family etc.
Children love to see their grandparents proudly show them photos from the family album or show them the family treasures, trophies and even the traditional recipes which have been handed down from generation to generation. Children love to listen to stories and anecdotes from the past, which help them to learn important life lessons.
[content-egg module=Amazon template=grid]4. Grandparents are the best caregivers after parents.
We have always seen that when we are in need of someone to help us to take care of our children, the first option is our grandparents. You do so because you know that your child will be safe, loved and well-taken care off by their grandparents.
Grandparents are the best caregivers after parents. Some would even go the extent to say that grandparents do a better job than parents. Grandparents develop a special bond with their grandchildren, in the process of nurturing and taking care of them.
5. Grandparents also help our children learn more about their parents.
Grandparents help our children to see us, parents, in a different light. Your children might see you as a firm, strict or an authoritative person. When grandparents share your childhood anecdotes, children are able to understand you better, which can help them come closer to you.
They help children learn about their family history and the many interesting things of the family. Children are able to know and understand other relatives better.
6. Grandparents help in filling the gap and in reducing the depression in children.
Today in many nuclear families, both parents are working and hence they have very little time to spend with their children. Children are also preoccupied with their academics, sports and other hobby classes, which leaves them with very little time for communication with their parents.
It has been observed that teenage suicides are on the rise due to an increase in childhood depression. Many time parents are unable to locate the symptoms of stress in their children, until its too late. Grandparents share a close bond with their grandchildren and so they are able to sense their moods and actions. They are able to gauge their feelings and understand them. They help to fill in the communication gap and build a strong positive relationship.
Some of the things that you can do to keep in touch with your parents and allow your children to spend more time with your parents are –
- Try and visit them as often as you can for e.g. long weekends, birthdays, anniversary etc. You can also call them over to stay at your place at their convenience.
- Encourage your children to write letters to them or to call them regularly.
- Use technology like Skype or video chat etc., to stay connected with them on a weekly basis.
- If you have daughters, then encourage them to learn new recipes or knitting or any other hobbies from their grandma. At the same time, boys can learn fishing, gardening or any other hobbies that your father may love to share. Spending time in doing an activity together helps in strengthening the bond.
We would encourage you to take an effort to make your children spend quality time with their grandparents. You will be surprised to see the impact it has on them.
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Tags: caregivers, love in family, Why Children Need Grandparents
