September Offer : 2 for 1 (Half Price when you bring another Dad who’s not been before)
Introduce another Dad/Male Carer to Rock and Roll Dads – Offer available in both the Babies and Toddler groups.
I’ve been running Dads Movement Play Sessions for nearly 2 years and over 40 Dads/Male carers have come along. Even if they’ve only come along once or twice, I know that they’ll have received some key messages about the significance of Movement Play for their baby’s development. Each Dad gets a handout that gives some simple information and top tips of things they can do. And they get to experience slowing down, coming down to their baby’s level, and having a rock and a roll.
It’s simple, and yet often Dads may not take the time to do this. There are so many distractions these days, that take our attention. We are bombarded with stimulation, of things to respond to, and can so easily get hooked into the quick fire activity of social media and email. Babies and young children are on a different level, in more ways than one.
They’re on the floor and are totally with their sensory world. Switched on to learning and exploring, and finding out what it is like to be in this new world. In the early days and weeks, they are noticing all the basic bodily sensations of hunger, feeding, weeing and pooing, warmth and safety. They are in survival mode. In the early weeks and months, they are exploring all the shifts in tone of their muscles. They are tackling the challenges of gravity, their large heads and bellies. And at the same time they are in ‘Attaching and Relating mode’, their continued survival is dependent on connecting with someone who will meet their needs. This is the start of a long journey. This moving, sensory exploration puts all the foundations in place.
Rock and Roll Dads, for Babies and Toddlers, is all about this. It supports Dads getting on the ground, and taking some time to tune in. This is the world of hanging out together. Maybe not ‘doing’ much, but really being.
And I want to enable more Dads to come along. When I started this group, I thought Social Media would be the way to spread the word. But I have been struck by the hard work it has taken to get the word out. I wonder if men don’t use social media the way women do. Are they more observers than participators on Facebook? (like me!). And are they just less ‘connected up’ with other men? This would chime with the current view of men’s isolation and links with concerns for their mental health.
So as well as running Rock and Roll Dads for babies and young children, I also run it for the men that care for them. For the men that strive to work for their families, bridging all the demands of current modern life, who could do with a bit of support and connection. So do me a favour, if you’ve read this blog post down to here, please forward it on to a Dad you know with a baby or young child. Give them a nudge to come along. It’s not painful, just a Saturday morning/afternoon of stretching out, being with their child, and learning some useful stuff about movement and play. And its 2 for 1 in September! (Half Price when you bring another Dad who’s not been before)
Sessions happen at South Hams Children’s Centre for Babies, and Chapel House Studios for toddlers on the first Saturday of the Month.
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