The Importance of Family Bonding Between Seniors and Their Grandchildren

For many seniors, family is the most valuable thing in their life. Close ties and family bonding activities with their grandchildren — or even their great-grandchildren — gives seniors visits to look forward to, opportunities to share their experiences and their history with a younger generation, and an excuse for both our older loved ones and our kids to try some new things!

It’s never too soon to introduce your children to their elders, regardless of their ages. Usually, babies and toddlers have no issues interacting with new people, but as they become a little bit older and more aware of their surroundings, shyness may make things a bit trickier. Their resistance might not only make building a relationship a lot more challenging, but it can hurt the feelings of your elderly parent or grandparent if the relationship is slow to take shape. Therefore, there’s no time like the present to get started!

Ways for Seniors to Connect to their Grandchildren:

Don’t be strangers

Regularly scheduled visits will increase the level of comfort felt by all involved. If Grandma and Grandpa live nearby, make it a point to see them often – at least once or twice a month. If your senior loved ones live farther away, admittedly it takes a bit more planning, but it’s still important to schedule visits as often as possible. Consider weekend trips as an option to help foster relationships with faraway relatives.

Take advantage of tech

Not that long ago, living far away meant being out of touch with the people we care about. Long distance phone calls were considered rare treats. But that’s not the case anymore. Practically every cell phone plan includes unlimited long-distance calling. Even better, you can set up video chats between your kids and your senior parents via the internet, your smartphone or an electronic tablet.

Pictures are worth a thousand words

Send Grandpa and Grandma digital photos and videos of the grandkids’ activities so they feel included, and then follow up with a phone call later to discuss the details. Or you could try to send some live stream video of the kids’ milestone moments. As they say, it’s the next best thing to being there!

Branch out the family tree

Family stories and heirlooms are important topics for our senior loved ones to talk about with grandchildren. Therefore, try to always set aside some story time for Grandpa and Grandma to chat about genealogy, and let the kids create their own family tree! These family bonding activities can be done in person or even over the internet.

A teaching moment

Whether it’s how to cast a fishing line just right or how to create the perfect quilt, seniors have acquired a lot of valuable skills. Teaching the hobbies and activities they’ve perfected over the decades to their grandchildren is a great way to connect.

Make it a project

Need something new to make things interesting? Consider a fun and easy at-home science experiment, wholesome fun for our older loved ones and kids alike. Here are some simple projects, perfect for the kitchen table, that you can try out together.

Whichever way you choose to bring your senior loved ones and your kids together, make sure to put forth the effort. It’s important for kids to know where they come from as they grow up, how previous generations worked to get where they are today, and what life was like for them when they were kids. After all, how many of us wish we could have asked our grandparents a few more questions about their lives when we had the chance?

In the meantime, doing family bonding activities enhances the lives of our senior loved ones in more ways than one. For example, regular visits and social time are great cures for loneliness and depression. Being able to share their thoughts and experiences gives grandparents an emotional outlet and makes them feel relevant and important to the people they love most.  Facilitating a strong bond between your parents and your kids benefits everyone involved.

And although sometimes bridging the generational gap takes a little bit of work to get started, it’s well worth the effort in the end!

Find new ways to connect with family, friends and more on Bethesda’s Health & Wellness blog.