It’s a well-established fact that mother-child bonding is essential to a child’s development but recent studies have shown that dad’s active participation contributes just as much to a child’s well-being!
On top of the care from mum and the attention given from a child care facility, bonding with dad has proven to be a big factor when it comes to influencing a child in their later years. In fact, some findings have even indicated that a father’s presence was the biggest influencer to a child’s development!
According to researcher Melanie Mallers, a professor in psychology at the California State University “fathers play a hugely important role in the mental health of their children much later in life. They have a unique style of interacting with their children and men who report having had a good relationship with their father during childhood were found to be better at dealing with stress.”
Apart from emotional and social development, dads can greatly affect a child’s academic development! Studies show that children who were more likely to get higher grades and better reading scores if they have a dad who was highly involved in their school activities (e.g. parent-teacher conferences, coaching the football team, etc.)
A more involved father will also give mum a much-deserved break! Dad and child can spend more time bonding while mum can have some time off to herself. This can create a happier and more relaxed home environment.
It’s important for dads to establish a good relationship with their child from birth. Common ways to create this initial bond include creating eye-contact, talking to a child and maintaining skin-to-skin contact.
As the child gets older, dad needs to come up with new ways to bond with him or her. Start with playing peekaboo with your infant then transition to introducing your child to sports or outdoor games!
Dads can still be active in their child’s life even while they’re at the child care centre. Become more present in your child’s life by volunteering at his or her child care centre as often as possible. At our child care centre in Brookvale, we encourage the active participation of all our parents!
Without a doubt, mums and dads play important although different roles in a child’s life. With the right balance and coordination, both mums and dads alike can work together to raise well-adjusted kids!
Work hand-in-hand with our Brookvale and other NSW child care centres to develop a strong father-child bond with your children!
