Now is the time to build great holiday memories. Get away from home as much as you can. Create summer adventures for your children. What’s the definition of an adventure? No fixed destination! Make sure your children have a holiday. It doesn’t have to be expensive, it doesn’t have to be off-shore, it just has to be significantly different from the rest of the year. These are the times your children will remember most.

I think that on a holiday the most important thing is to make sure that you get away from technology. No TV, no cell phones, no video games, lots of board games, cards, sightseeing etc – enforced opportunities to engage with your children, that’s what we all need.

The best holidays we ever had were the ones where we packed a tent, and went exploring parts of our own country that the children had not been to before. I find that children are wonderful at finding interesting things to do, at finding adventure, where ever they are – as long as they haven’t been there before. Novelty seems to work best. And involve them in the planning – talk about the adventure long before it happens, get them books on the area you are going to, get them to plan out what to see and where to go.

If you are in New Zealand, make sure you take your children to the beach as much as possible. Ninety-five percent of New Zealanders live within a 2 hour drive of the coast. Go to where other people don’t go. Every beach is worth exploring – ‘the West coast is the best coast’.

With respect to the oncoming school year, try to create a sense of positive anticipation for the new school year. Ask  your children what they want to achieve this coming year. Help them start to formulate goals and plans for this coming year. And if possible build in the possibilityof another great get-away holiday at the end of  it.

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