Posted by 
With Glastonbury Festival being less than a month away, the UK is headed right into festival season.
While we tend to associate festivals with loud music, drinking, and all-night partying, festivals are often also family affairs, with music-loving families taking their children from young ages.
However, 42% of millennial parents don’t believe that festivals are good for boosting children’s wellbeing and confidence.
According to Ginny Lalieu, a specialist in kids’ confidence, this couldn’t be further from the case and, in fact, festivals offer a wealth of benefits for children’s learning and confidence.
The benefits of taking children to festivals
Helps children to connect with nature
Lalieu said: “Spending time outdoors at a festival allows children to connect with the natural world around them.
“Nature has a calming effect on the mind and body, reducing stress and promoting well-being! Being surrounded by trees, plants and wildlife can evoke feelings of wonder and awe in children, which in turn boosts their mood and overall happiness.”
This is all down to serotonin, also known as a ‘feel good hormone’ being produced when we’re outdoors. This helps to keep us focused, emotionally balanced, happier and calmer.
It means that even if the sun isn’t splitting the skies, your kids will likely enjoy mucking about in festival mud!
Offers children opportunities for unstructured play and novelty
Lalieu said: “Festivals can provide children with ample opportunities for unstructured, free play – which is essential for their cognitive, social, and emotional development.”
When it comes to festivals, there are plenty of opportunities for free play. From family zones, to climbing trees, to even helping to put tents up and roll out sleeping bags, which all encourage children to use their imagination, creativity and problem-solving skills.
Laleu enthused: “This builds self-esteem, as they experience a range of emotions (such as anticipation, joy and frustration), take appropriate risks, make mistakes, get creative, persevere and adapt.
“Festivals also provide a bit of fun and safe unpredictability. While our brains love knowing what to expect, we remember novelty more and delightful surprises can arise around every corner of a festival, like the delight and fun of jumping in a muddy puddle!”
Strengthens relationships and social skills
Even for the most introverted among us, festivals can be a great way to meet new people and children are no exception.
Lalieu said: Festivals offer a unique setting for families and children to bond and create lasting memories together. Whether it’s feeling cosy in a tent, smelling and tasting food, co-creating a game, listening to live music, feeling the grass or jumping in muddy puddles together.”
She explained that children can foster communication, cooperation and a sense of belonging, adding: “It’s these shared, relational experiences that strengthen our connections and build trust! With fewer distractions (such as screens and work), children can experience more meaningful interactions.”
If you or your children are nervous, prepping could settle your pre-festival nerves
If you or your children are feeling a little nervous, Lalieu explained that the key to confidence is feeling and trusting that we are safe, and knowing what to expect can help us to feel that.
The expert said: “A few weeks before the event, explain the concept clearly to them and mark it on a calendar. Talk about what they might see and do – look at photos, videos and maps together.
“Tell stories of your experiences as a child, and explore stories from their favourite characters in books and TV shows, like Peppa Pigs’ brand new Caravan Friends episode launching on 4th June, or existing episodes like The Festival Camping Trip or The Muddy Puddle Festival.”
Lalieu added that this is also a great opportunity to discuss boundaries and practise safety measures ahead of time, such as the importance of sticking together, wearing wristbands with your phone number, identifying landmarks and meeting spots, recognising the security team and medical tent, and practising what to do if they get lost or get hurt.
Enjoy the festivities!
Related…
