On Father’s Day we are feeling a little more reflective than usual.
In collaboration with Parent Ping, we asked 1500 people what qualities they valued most in a Dad. 51% of those who responded said the most important quality in a Dad was kindness.
Patience and communication were also highly valued.
What quality do you most value in a Dad?
PARENT PING
What a great quality and reminds us of a poetic turn of phrase from President Obama. When asked what advice he gave his daughters about their futures he said ‘Be kind and be useful’.
Be Kind and Be Useful.
Dagmara Mendes de Oliveira a Fegans’ counsellor sees kindness as being naturally bound to empathy. ‘Showing a child kindness and showing kindness to others, so that your child can see it is modelling that behaviour and means they are more likely to also be kind’. Clarinet, a volunteer moderator on the Dad.info forum believes that kindness says, ‘“I love you” to a child and offers them security. Being kind shows that you have thought about them beforehand and what they would like or need to make them feel better’.
Father’s Day can be tough
We know for many Dads, father’s day isn’t a walk in the park. As Dads, things don’t always go to plan, and many Dads in our community have experienced the stress of breakup. If you are one of them and are able to continue to be patient with your children and consistently kind, that’s winning. We all mess up and lose our patience – we aren’t perfect! However, clear and honest communication, kindness and patience can grow our relationship with our children.
We at Dad.info are here for every Dad, and love chatting to Mums too. We are a positive platform spreading awareness of fatherhood. So new dad or old hand, resident parent or separated, biological, adoptive, step or a LAD (like a Dad) then from us to you, Happy Fathers Day.
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We have been talking with our community of Dads about what is it that a Father, or anyone who cares for a child like a Dad brings to a family? Far too often we hear negative adjectives, (absent, violent, distant) attached to the role of father. Positive qualities, like patience, generosity and kindness are often missed in the media representation of Dads.
Well not today.
Today, we are here celebrating every kind father and all the patient Dads.
We asked five dads who are key contributors to Dad Info for their advice about being dads so here are our top tips from Ian, Brian, Mark, Andy and Ashley:
What do kids need from their Dad?
What advice do you wish you’d been given before you became a Dad?
What is you top Dad tip?
Thanks to:
@ParentPing a free daily app with more than 1500 users answering questions on parenting.
@KickOffAt3 a youth engagement organisation backed by the Met Police.
@Mark_J_Arnold who leads the Dad’s fire circle and supports parents with additional needs.
@SpurgeonsUK a children’s charity giving hope to thousands of children and families.
@Feganscharity a children’s counselling charity and the publisher of Dad Info
and Andy Peck, a broadcaster and father for getting involved!
