13 Jul Family Holidays Instead of Toys? Studies say “yes”!
Research says parents should be spending their money on holidays instead of toys. Dr. Oliver James, one of Britain’s leading child psychologists, has written a book leading parents to understanding how to reset their’s children emotional thermostat and create life long memories buy spending their money on shared experiences rather than things.
According to the psychologist, parents waste a lot of money on toys that they should be spending in other ways that children can appreciate more. They often get toys they are not really wanted. On the other hand, family holidays are definitely valued by children, both in the moment and for long afterwards in their memories.
As adults, we find more fulfillments from travel. Children are not so different as long as the adults are mindful about what kind of vacantions are best. Becasuse children see the world differently, we should let them explore the new places we have brought them to. They will find the things the adults don’t see and they will share the joy. Family vacantions provide a child a way of prelonging playfulness with their parents by removing from the stressors of life.
What kind of holiday is best for children?
Dr. Oliver James says that a lot of parents make the mistake of choosing a holiday destination they find as interesting to children as it is for them. For instance, culturally attractive cities can be interesting for adults but boring for children. If you still choose such destinations, let the children have opinions about what objectives you will visit.
Another plus of family travel is they let the kids see another side of adults they rarely see when they came back from work, tired. Holidays remove us, physically, from our pressured everyday lives. They are times when everyone can relax and spend time with the others.
It’s true, toys encourage play. But the psychologist argues that many of modern ones put distance between children and parents, taking off the time they could spend together. Play is a „crucial human experience, for both children and adults, but it should suppose human interaction”.
Many times, the key piece missing is this human interaction. Without this, without being in touch with others, life would be very empty and lacking of joy. It’s about moments spent together, such as sharing an ice cream with our children or other moments sometimes we are too busy to give them importance. These, and not the mountains of toys, will be appreciated by our children.
