If you can find that perfect activity that you both enjoy doing, it makes it far easier to have fun together.
This article originally appeared on The Good Men Project and has been republished with permission.
Doing DIY jobs around the house together can be a great bonding experience between a parent and child. This infographic demonstrates how your loose change can be used to complete some jobs in the home and out in the garden. These little DIY tips can provide the opportunity for you to teach your little ones some life lessons, while at the same time giving you both something fun to do together.
1. Fixing things.
Hanging a cabinet door or fixing a wobbly table can become a great way to work out a problem together. You may feel like they would be more interested in watching TV or playing a video game, but you’ll be surprised how often kids are eager to help out. When it comes to fixing a wobbly table, for example, one of you can lift the table while the other glues a coin to the faulty table leg.
2. Offering tips they can put into practice.
Bonding moments don’t have to be massive events. They can be as simple as a little tip which your son or daughter will remember later in life and find helpful time and again. Getting a tricky lid off some Tupperware or doing a tire treads test with a coin is a good trick you can pass on. Small moments like these can build up a stronger relationship over time.
3. Cleaning up.
As the infographic shows, a coin is an effective tool for getting rid of carpet marks. Doing a little cleaning up around the house together can be made into a team-building task. Not only will you get some tidying up done, your child will feel valued, and it will reinforce the importance of cleaning up, no matter how boring the prospect is! Try and make it fun, introduce some competition perhaps, and make sure you thank them for helping out. This could also be a precursor to them doing a few chores regularly and earning some pocket money!
4. Gardening.
Similarly, working as a team to keep the garden looking nice is another opportunity to teach some skills and get the family outside doing something active. You could even try out a few tricks with some spare change, by putting a ring of coins around plants to keep slugs away, or by filling a bag with some coins and water to repel flies.
5. Making things together.
Making something together, such as new buttons, drink coasters, or washers for DIY jobs, can be a good way of creating something as a team and allowing your creativity to flow. This
will enable your child to see a little more of you as a person, rather than just a ‘parental figure’, and allow your them to express themselves too. This kind of activity could also allow you to branch out into other hobbies or creative tasks together, and can only make your relationship stronger.
6. Finding common ground.
Indeed, if you can find that perfect activity that you both enjoy doing, it makes it far easier to have fun together. Try a few different creative and practical alternatives to see where your interests match up. Have a go at a sport, or if one of you is not a sports fan, do something completely different — visit a museum, or go camping. This can also be an opportunity to teach them the value of being a little adventurous and trying new things.
7. Communication.
Demonstrating to your child the importance of communication is something which you can do throughout most of the activities discussed. A lot of people can find communication difficult, and if your son or daughter sees that you struggle with this when they’re young, it may end up being something they have trouble with too.
Try and establish these bonding activities as spaces in which you discuss things and also listen to each other. Talking while doing an activity can also help to take the pressure off the conversation, and give you a focus if you’re finding it difficult to talk about other things.
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