Tea and biscuits, sunshine and ice cream, the park and a picnic. We all know the joy a perfect partnership can bring - and we’re really excited to tell you about this one…
We’re delighted to announce that tiney is teaming up with national intergenerational charity The Together Project to spread smiles all across the UK - and we want to invite tiney childminders and their minded children to join in the fun!!
The Together Project builds friendships across generations. The benefits of this are immense. From teaching kindness and compassion to learning from the wisdom and life experience of different generations, children will gain so much from getting involved. Not to mention the opportunities for language development that will inevitably happen through meaningful interactions in every visit. What’s more, your child and their childminder will be playing a valuable role in reducing loneliness and improving the wellbeing of older people, which is such an uplifting thing to be part of. It’s a total win-win!
"Great experience for the minded children I care for to interact with older generations and make new friends and also give them a new experience exploring new environments whilst extending their development."
If you want your child to take part, what could this look like? Well, there are two heartwarming projects currently available to sign up to - tiney childminders will be able to sign up to Songs and Smiles (which happens in person) on the tiney community hub or there’s an initiative called Crafting connections (which offers a remote way to make friends).
Songs & Smiles is a music group for 0-4 year olds, their grown-ups and older adults. Held in care homes and supported living schemes across the UK, it’s one of the most joy-filled ways to spend an hour each week. From singing and movement to instruments and bubbles (plus time to make friends over tasty refreshments) the sessions are a wonderful way for your childminder and your children to make some wonderful new connections whilst enjoying a top-quality, engaging music class.
We hope to see many of our tiney homes getting involved with Songs & Smiles in locations across the country. Events listings will appear on our childminder community hub and all tiney chidlminders and their families will have access to a special Songs & Smiles tiney tips collection in the tiney app.
"As a childminder, of 23 years, Songs & Smiles is the best thing I have done in the community - it makes my heart melt!"
The Together Project will be launching in new locations every term so fingers crossed your childminder will find one in your area.
Hands up if your little ones enjoy arts & crafts? Crafting connections uses the power of creativity to form wonderful friendships between the generations. For this project there is a small monthly donation required - but you’ll soon see why we need to ask for it. If you sign up then your child is matched with an older person and each month will receive a themed arts & crafts pack in the post. They then create a piece of artwork and answer some questions, then post it back to The Together Project to send on to their older friend - who’s also creating a piece of artwork for them! Your child then receives their friend’s picture and completed questionnaire (which they store in their Friendship Folder) with their next pack. Everyone then starts working on their new masterpiece and the fun continues every month. It’s arts & crafts with a social purpose - get ready for the feelgood fuzzies every time the next pack arrives on the doormat. For tiney childminders we'll also be creating a special Crafting Connections resource, available through the tiney app.
The project is available nationally - if it sounds like something you want your child to be a part of, you can sign up here.
And all of this is just the start. Over the coming weeks and months, tiney and The Together Project will be announcing exciting new elements to the partnership, including lots of collaboration ideas, educational content around the benefits of intergenerational learning and ways we can grow the Together Project’s events across the country.
And if reading about all of this wonderful work wasn’t enough of a temptation to get your child involved, then just take a few minutes watch this video to hear directly from those benefiting the most from this very special project.
We're excited for all our tiney childminders, their minded children and their families to get involved and help fulfil The Together Project's vision of a nation full of meaningful intergenerational friendships!