Being a stay-at-home mum does not mean you are depriving your children socially, but it can mean you have to put some thought into the matter. You can’t just stay home all day – you need to take your children out to play where they will socialise other children. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on this, just some time.
It’s amazing how even in 2010 the fight between stay-at-home mums and working mothers still continues. Mothers Who Work is all about empowering mothers to work in some form – and it’s not because us working mums are more interested in our careers than our children. That is far from the truth. The fact is that there are instances when being a full-time stay-at-home mum can have quite negative effects on children. And with the current economic climate, more mums who have always worked may find themselves being a stay-at-home mum while they are in between jobs.
Being a stay-at-home mum does not mean you are depriving your children socially, but it can mean you have to put some thought into the matter. You can’t just stay home all day – you need to take your children out to play where they will socialise other children. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on this, just some time.
But as they grow into toddlers, children definitely need to be around other children, even if they don’t interact much until they are around two years old or so.
One thing to remember is that activities don’t have to be formal. You don’t have to pay for art classes, baby gym classes and all those fanciful things – if you can afford it, it’s an added extra. Just take the kids to the park or story time at the library – there will be other children there for them to interact with if they like. Or they can just run around and play on the playground equipment.
If there are cousins or neighborhood children of similar ages around, it can be very helpful to get the kids together just casually. Whether you do this by having all the children playing in one family’s garden or have quick get-togethers, this is a great way to ensure that your child does get some social time.
Of course, if your child has spent a lot of time with just you, it can be hard to get them to pay any attention to the other children. You may have to work harder in this case.
One thing just about all children love to do is colour in, draw and paint. Just go to the local pound shop and buy a piece of whiteboard. A 4-5 foot long piece is big enough for several children to draw on together. Get the washable crayons rather than markers and let the kids get creative. They may not be playing together as such, but they’re certainly aware of one another and will have to take turns using the different colours.
There will be arguments over colours and who colours where, but that just encourages interaction and it is up to you and the other parents to keep it friendly.
You should also take a look at what your child enjoys doing with you that could be done with other children. From playing catch to board games, there are many ways to get young children interested in playing with each other. If your child learns to do something with you, they may be more interested in other kids when they realise that they can do that activity with them as well.
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