On the 20th, the North Kaohsiung Family Service Center led 50 families from child protection and high-risk backgrounds on a parent-child day trip to Yunlin’s Janfusun Fancyworld and Lüying Ranch. The event included parent-child group dancing, hugging each other, and a trust-building challenge game, all aimed at bringing parents and children closer. It gave parents who usually struggle to express their feelings a chance to connect with their kids and show care for one another—expressing “I love you” on this special day of 520.
This was the first time the Family Service Center incorporated parenting education into a family outing by holding a lecture at Janfusun Fancyworld. They invited psychological counselor Xu Anli to discuss how to interact with teenagers, preschoolers, and hyperactive children at home. Through the session, parents picked up useful tips and had the opportunity to practice them right away while on the trip with their kids.
Parent A-Ren shared that his child usually doesn’t talk much at home. Although he understands that this is typical behavior during adolescence and that kids tend to prefer spending time with classmates, playing the “gum sticking together” game today made him feel like he hadn’t been this close to his child in years. He said that scolding or even hitting usually doesn’t help, and that he really needs to spend more quality time with his child to understand what’s going on in his young mind.
Elementary school student A-Zhi shyly said that experiencing milking cows, watching the goose race, and feeding the calf at the ranch were all really fun. Dancing with his dad and hugging each other also let him feel the warmth of his father’s rough, large hands.
Wei Zongyin, director of the Family Service Center, explained that parents of child protection and high-risk families often face challenges in parenting. Though they are willing to take good care of their children, they lack proper methods and skills. Additionally, many protective service families also deal with multiple pressures such as unstable employment, financial hardship, marital discord, weak support from relatives and friends, and emotional instability. These factors can easily lead to either overly harsh or neglectful parenting. During social work services, staff adopt a strengths-based and resilience-focused approach to help parents learn positive parenting techniques and improve parent-child interactions.
(China Times)