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https://theconversation.com/we-need-to-look-after-our-grand-friends-how-childcare-in-aged-care-can-help-young-and-old-263275>
"An experimental aged-care model in South Australia, where purpose-built
independent retirement living apartments are co-located with an early learning
centre, is seeking to foster connections between residents and children.
In this model, one of the first of its kind in Australia, older adults live on
site and pre-school children (aged between three and six) learn there, enabling
daily interactions.
For our new study, published in the
Journal of Intergenerational
Relationships, we asked five older adults and 17 children what they think
about living and learning in this community.
We were particularly interested in how the design of the building helps the
children and residents interact. We asked both the older adults and children to
take photos of the spaces in which they spent the most time together, submit
some of these to us, and verbally share their reflections with us about the
meaning of the photos.
This is called a “photovoice” methodology and is commonly used to bring the
voices of children and older adults into research.
For the older adults, our findings suggest these intergenerational interactions
helped to reduce loneliness, improve mental wellbeing, and keep people active
and engaged.
For children, the interactions with the older adults – who they fondly refer to
as their “grand-friends” – appeared to foster empathy, allow them to develop a
deeper understanding of ageing, and enrich their learning."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
