Skip to main content

A Little Time Goes a Long Way

by Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination!

There is a series of short radio commercials that I have come to love. They are about solidifying the family, and the slogan is, “Family–it’s about time.” The way I see it, it means that if you want to keep your family strong, you just need to give them your time. That makes it sound so easy, doesn’t it? And in reality, if you participate in the Discovery Family Adventures, it can be just that simple.

Healthy, strong family relationships are foundational to young people’s growth, learning, and well-being. These relationships build strong social and emotional strengths that kids use throughout their lives. The Discovery Family Adventures use the research-based social development strategy (SDS) to help families achieve positive outcomes from the time spent together. Parents love the ideas, activities, and experiences to help build strong family relationships. 

The Social Development Strategy (SDS) is an evidence-based framework that enhances five factors proven to build protection and organizes these protective factors into a strategy for action that anyone can use in their daily interactions with young people.

The five protective factors include:

  • Providing opportunities for active participation and meaningful involvement with others, including families, schools, communities and peer groups.

  • Providing opportunities for young people to develop the skills they need to succeed.

  • Providing consistent and appropriate recognition and praise for their effort, improvement and accomplishments.

  • As adults in the youth’s life provide these opportunities and recognition, strong bonds form and youth build powerful relationships with the adults in their life.

  • These adults then become an important protective influence for the child and are able to set clear standards and share healthy beliefs. Young people are more likely to engage in healthy, socially responsible behaviour when parents, teachers and the community around them communicate healthy beliefs and clear standards.

Bonding between key adults and youth is vital, and to create these bonds young people need opportunities for meaningful and active engagement with them at home, at school, with peers, and in their community.

The Discovery Family Adventures are a variety of flexible activities designed to help adults ensure that all five of these key steps are available and happening regularly, even daily, in their home. The Adventures are available at no cost to any family wanting to build stronger family bonds. Families can connect with the adventures on the website at DiscoveryFamilyAdventures.com or via the GooseChase App (https://mydiscoverydestination.com/apphub_dfa/ for directions). Families will also want to connect with the Discovery App by texting 'family' to 888-403-4140. This app allows you to stay connected to new Adventures available through the program, as well as other free resources available in their local area. 

Adventures, an App totally focused on family fun, and all kinds of resources to help you be the very best parent you can be, and it’s all 100% FREE to every family that wants to participate. It’s really FUN! And there is nothing EASIER to help you strengthen your family and build resilience in the youth you love.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Focus on New Beginnings

by Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination! With the enchantment of the holidays in the rear view mirror, many of us are looking through the windshield at a new year. We make resolutions and even keep some of them. Sadly, many of them fall by the wayside within a few months, weeks, or even days. I’ve already eaten some of the chocolate I got for Christmas–I guess I should have finished it off by New Year’s Eve. The best way to tackle those good intentions that come with a new year is in baby steps. If one of your new goals is to spend more quality time with your family and to be an interactive, intentional parent, My Discovery Destination! and the Discovery Family Coalition have got you covered. My Discovery Destination! makes interactive, intentional parenting easy.  The Discovery Family Adventures are chock-full of free, flexible, fun activities that help parents really connect with their children and do it with a purpose. While some are more involved, even long-t
Post a Comment
Read more

Fall into Family

by Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination! While I am a warm-weather individual at heart, I do love autumn. The temperatures are no longer stifling (although it sure seems to cool off FAST in the Rocky Mountain West), fall sports return (L.O.V.E. to play volleyball and watch football!), and there are lots of activities to get families geared up for the end of the year (where did 2021 go?!?).  The list of fall activities and responsibilities can be quite overwhelming. The desire to bond as a family can get lost in the never-ending catalog of time-worthy pursuits. Active, concerned parents might ask themselves, “How do we make time for what is most important when we have so many good tasks tugging at our attention?”  What is the answer? In this case, the answer is ‘if you can’t beat them, join them’. So, how about intentionally combining efforts? The “how” is even easier.  The Discovery Family Coalition is proud to bring you two virtual Discovery Hunts built on the G
Post a Comment
Read more

How to Raise $25,000 for Suicide Prevention with just a Click

by Sharilee Griffiths, Director and Meagan Waite, Assistant Director - My Discovery Destination! The goal of the Discovery Family Adventures is to encourage families to spend time together, strengthening family bonds. Research shows that family attachment is the best prevention for risky behaviors, including suicide. Ever since the day of its inception, My Discovery Destination! has provided its Discovery Family Adventures program to each and every family FOR FREE. Part of our mission states that we “strengthen families by providing opportunities for FREE Family Fun.” Discovery Family Adventures are chock-full of free, flexible, fun activities that help parents really connect with their children and do it with a purpose. They are all 100% FREE to every family that wants to participate and will continue to be free to families. But nothing “free” is ever truly “free.” Someone is paying for it somewhere.  In order for My Discovery Destination! to keep the Discovery Family Adventu
Post a Comment
Read more