How important are family breaks to you? We all know that holidays are a great time to relax and for many, spend some much needed quality time with our children. But have you considered just how much a positive impact this time could be having on your children? Or on the flipside, the negative impact if you are not able to take family breaks?
Recent evidence suggests that quality family time encouraged children to develop in a whole host of ways from taking their first steps to learning how to swim. On average, a baby takes their first holiday at around four months, giving them plenty of scope to reach those all important milestones.
The research was conducted by Centre Parcs, the UK's leading short breaks operator. They carried out some independent research involving 2,000 parents. Their findings suggested that holidays are far more than just a ‘nice time away with the family’.
Of the parents surveyed, 47% said that key developmental milestones were achieved whilst on holiday. This included crawling (11%), standing up for the first time (10%), walking (10%) and feeding themselves (9%) were achieved whilst on a family holiday. They found that a staggering 42% of children felt more confident trying new things whilst away with their family.
Holidays also give pre-schoolers some of the independence it is hard to allow them to have in the home and Nursery environment – at just 3.8 years old, they were confident to try new things without parental supervision.
But, it’s not just about the huge milestones which children seem to be reaching whilst on a family trip. A whole host of activities are achieved for the first time whilst on a family break; 37% of children built their first sandcastle whilst on a family trip, 29% tried swimming, and perhaps surprisingly, 10% kicked a football for the first very time whilst on holiday!
Jo Hemmings, Behavioural Psychologist talks about the benefits of family breaks. ‘Quality time away from the hustle and bustle of daily lives is so important for families. It provides an opportunity for parents and children to learn and explore new things together which is critical to building confidence. As such, parents and children alike often take their ‘bravery steps’ whilst away – real firsts in both development and family excitement – which can often set them up for a more fearless future.’
With over half of the parents asked admitting to feeling more relaxed and more confident after a few days away with the kids, it’s not surprising perhaps that the children felt the same way.
Colin Whaley, Sales & Marketing Director at Center Parcs said: ‘Families are becoming more confident at taking breaks away from the very beginning of parenthood and, whether they’re looking to relax and refresh, or be active and adventurous, there are great benefits of time out together. At Center Parcs we have activities suitable for all ages and whether it’s for those learning their first few steps through to the bigger ‘kids’ wanting to also experience something for the very first time, families can create their very own tailor-made break just a short drive away from home.’
So it seems that we now have a valid excuse to holiday with our children. I would like to think that we should holiday as often as possible in the hope that our child will meet these all important milestones before the next. However, we all know that work commitments and of course disposable income allow few of us to holiday as often as we would like. So reality strikes. There is a balance between holidays and reality – and if we have the opportunity to get that balance right, it seems our children will do just fine!
