Browsing by Subject "yhdessä tekeminen"

Parents and their children spend less time together than before. The everyday life of families with children is perceived as busy, and children spend even more time in day care. Home and family create the child's most important growth environment and interactive atmosphere has a significant connection to the child's safe growth and wellbeing. The atmosphere of caring refers to the ideal interactive atmosphere of a family with children, where the educational significance of being together is recognized. This study examines how the qualities of the atmosphere of caring and the qualities of parents' educational awareness are seen through the interaction of everyday life’s common activities of small children and their parents. The research method of this study is qualitive. Research data was collected using a diary method and a semi-structured interview. The participants consisted of five families, all of which had a mother, a father and two children, who were under school age. Families kept a diary for a week, of what they did together in their everyday life. The diaries were used as a support of the reflection in the interviews. Only parents were interviewed for the study. The data was analyzed by qualitive content analysis. According to the result of this study, during interaction of common activity, qualities of the atmosphere of caring appeared, which increased the positiveness of the emotional climate. These qualities were lack of urgency, the supporting of the cooperation between children, genuine presence, and consideration of participation. The qualities which increased the positiveness of the emotional climate were also seen as part of the educational awareness of the parents, which was found to embody different goals related to education. The goals were educational child orientation, children’s future everyday management skills, the reconciling of hobbies, work, and family life. A precondition for the goals is awareness of the educational significance of unhurried time with children, which is also a precondition for the realization of the atmosphere of caring. Therefore, unhurried time together with children, plays an important role in family’s everyday life’s interaction.