DAD.info
Free online course for separated parents
Forum - Ask questions. Get answers.
Free online course for separated parents
DAD.info | Fatherhood | Being Dad | It’s Fathers Day – Let’s be Kind

It’s Fathers Day – Let’s be Kind

NellGC

NellGC

On Father’s Day we are feeling a little more reflective than usual.

In collaboration with Parent Ping, we asked 1500 people what qualities they valued most in a Dad. 51% of those who responded said the most important quality in a Dad was kindness. 

Patience and communication were also highly valued.  

What quality do you most value in a Dad?

PARENT PING

What a great quality and reminds us of a poetic turn of phrase from President Obama. When asked what advice he gave his daughters about their futures he said ‘Be kind and be useful’.  

Be Kind and Be Useful.

Dagmara Mendes de Oliveira a Fegans’ counsellor sees kindness as being naturally bound to empathy. ‘Showing a child kindness and showing kindness to others, so that your child can see it is modelling that behaviour and means they are more likely to also be kind’.  Clarinet, a volunteer moderator on the Dad.info forum believes that kindness says, ‘“I love you” to a child and offers them security. Being kind shows that you have thought about them beforehand and what they would like or need to make them feel better’. 

Father’s Day can be tough

We know for many Dads, father’s day isn’t a walk in the park. As Dads, things don’t always go to plan, and many Dads in our community have experienced the stress of breakup.  If you are one of them and are able to continue to be patient with your children and consistently kind, that’s winning. We all mess up and lose our patience – we aren’t perfect! However, clear and honest communication, kindness and patience can grow our relationship with our children.  

We at Dad.info are here for every Dad, and love chatting to Mums too. We are a positive platform spreading awareness of fatherhood. So new dad or old hand, resident parent or separated, biological, adoptive, step or a LAD (like a Dad) then from us to you, Happy Fathers Day.

Watch our Vids

We have been talking with our community of Dads about what is it that a Father, or anyone who cares for a child like a Dad brings to a family? Far too often we hear negative adjectives, (absent, violent, distant) attached to the role of father. Positive qualities, like patience, generosity and kindness are often missed in the media representation of Dads.

Well not today.

Today, we are here celebrating every kind father and all the patient Dads. 

We asked five dads who are key contributors to Dad Info for their advice about being dads so here are our top tips from Ian, Brian, Mark, Andy and Ashley:  

What do kids need from their Dad?

What advice do you wish you’d been given before you became a Dad?

What is you top Dad tip?

Thanks to:

@ParentPing a free daily app with more than 1500 users answering questions on parenting.

@KickOffAt3 a youth engagement organisation backed by the Met Police.

@Mark_J_Arnold who leads the Dad’s fire circle and supports parents with additional needs.

@SpurgeonsUK a children’s charity giving hope to thousands of children and families.

@Feganscharity a children’s counselling charity and the publisher of Dad Info

and Andy Peck, a broadcaster and father for getting involved!

Related entries

De-escalation: how to calm kids down before they explode!

De-escalation: how to calm kids down before they explode!

Did you think that tantrums and explosions would be left in toddlerhood? Sadly, they're not. While older kids and teens are less likely to throw themselves to the floor because you didn't buy them a lolly, they can still be just ask explosive. In a bid to quell those...

How to deal with tantrums

How to deal with tantrums

Tantrums are one of the most stressful parts of parenting. Even the calmest dad can be pushed to their limits by a screaming child in the middle of Asda! Here's some helpful information on how to deal with tantrums to help you manage those miserable meltdowns: Are...

Back to school anxiety: how to help

Back to school anxiety: how to help

It's that time again: up and down the country parents are ironing uniforms, sticking name tags on to blazers and packing pencil cases. But how are our kids feeling? For some, the return to school- or start of school- brings a heap of anxiety. Here' how to help a child...

Latest entries

Life after divorce: legal tips for men

Life after divorce: legal tips for men

A divorce is one of the most life-changing events most people will experience, and isaccompanied by a lot of emotional, financial, domestic and legal considerations. Thinkingabout life after divorce may be exciting, or daunting, or a combination of both, but it is...

De-escalation: how to calm kids down before they explode!

De-escalation: how to calm kids down before they explode!

Did you think that tantrums and explosions would be left in toddlerhood? Sadly, they're not. While older kids and teens are less likely to throw themselves to the floor because you didn't buy them a lolly, they can still be just ask explosive. In a bid to quell those...

Pin It on Pinterest