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Simply Grand
The Importance of Grandparents
By Dawn Marie Barhyte
project, when children share in a grandparent's interests and skills, they are introduced to new activities and ideas. Grandparents are very patient, effective teachers. In fact, knowledge, skills and attitudes picked up from grandparents tend to stick with children throughout their lifetimes more than those picked up from other sources. Dolan has taught her grandchildren how to sew and shares in this activity regularly.
Dr. Kornhaber has found that children with strong relationships with their grandparents have a good sense of family and security, do better in school and feel comfortable with older people. Bosak, also a leading authority in intergenerational research, has found the relationship not only helps children get better grades, but also helps them abstain from drugs and violence. Her book, How to Build the Grandma Connection (Communication Project, 2000), offers many practical tips for getting involved in a grandchild's life.
A child cannot have too much love and attention. Love and affection is the No. 1 ingredient children need to develop optimally. According to Bosak, children feel special when they are spoiled by grandparents.
Grandmothers can serve as attachment figures and play pivotal roles in a young child's social development. According to the organization Zero to Three, a link has been shown between higher social development scores and infants whose grandparents had greater amounts of family contact. It is vital to allow the intergenerational bond to bloom early. Letting kids and grandparents work out their own special relationship sets up a strong connection for the future.
Grandparents instill unconditional love. That love, coupled with grandparents' trademark patience, can help children to trust others, become more independent and take initiative. This dynamic does wonders for a child's self-esteem. Children are forming beliefs about themselves early in life, and when grandparents are available to provide comfort, kids feel safe, secure and lovable. The undivided, no-strings attention helps bolster competence, too.
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