Grand Friendships

I am very happy to share with you this great resource about "Grand Friendships!" Connecting children with older adults can be an important and beneficial addition to any early childhood program, and this book will give you guidelines on how to do it successfully. Check it out today!
Patricia


Book Review:

Don’t Cheat the Children:
Connecting Generations Through Grand Friendships

By Helene Block Fields
Wonderstone Press, 2009

An inspiring resource for both teachers and parents, Don’t Cheat the Children, provides research, guidance and personal stories to inform readers of the benefits of intergenerational relationships and provides the steps to building successful relationships between young children and older generations.

Written by an educator and pioneer in the field of intergenerational relationships, Helene Block Fields shares her vast experience, providing insight and direction for parents and teachers. She tells the story of a third grade classroom in Florida that implemented an intergenerational program. The class arranged daily visits to a neighborhood nursing home, pairing children with older adults. Fields describes the scene as the children arrived at the home: “It felt like a charge of electricity in the air.” Children and elders alike were calling out to each other with joy and admirations upon the children’s arrival. Field illustrates how these relationships are not only powerful for the older generation, but of great benefit to children as well, giving them wisdom, laughter, advice and unconditional love.

Fields defines Grand Friendships as: “Comfortable, two-way connections between children and trustworthy older adults in their own families, neighborhoods, schools, places of worship, or other safe settings.” Studies show that preschool children involved in intergenerational programs had higher preschool/social development scores than children in non-intergenerational programs.

Filled with completing stories of successful intergenerational programs, the book is an enjoyable and informative read. Each chapter also includes a “tips” list for teachers, parents and older adults on how to build successful Grand Friendships.

Fields also shares comments from the children in these programs, 20 years later. One young man, shared how these relationships impacted his life: “I learned more about real life there than I could have learned in a year at school. Also, this made me want to help the community because of how important it was and how good it felt. It instilled a sense of responsibility that stayed with me.”

Helene Block Fields not only paves the way for teachers and parents to implement such inspiring programs. She thoroughly illustrates the short and long term benefits of these programs, inspiring any reader to take on this challenge.

To order visit: www.grandfriendships.com.