Children Who Grow Up With Their Grandparents Are Happier And More Secure

Reviewed and approved by the psychologist Valeria Sabater.

Written by Valeria Sabater

Last update: 22 December, 2021

Children that get to grow up with their grandparents are lucky. Thanks to this bond, they get to experience more affection, more emotional reinforcement and also an exceptional legacy of memories that will always accompany them throughout their lives.

We are not implying that children who grow up without the closeness of their grandparents will be less happy. The point we are trying to make is that childhood is a unique opportunity in which a great amount of stimuli, and bonds based on unconditional love, translates into emotional maturity.

Interesting studies have found that children left in the care of their grandparents rather than daycare centers acquire greater fluency in language. They also are more emotionally secure.

It is clear that sometimes, not all parents are close to their own parents. This makes the development of a “grandparent-grandchild” bond a bit trickier. However, if this situation applies to you, do not hesitate to allow your child to enjoy a relationship with their grandparents every now and then.

Childhood is a stage that ends rather quickly. In order to develop a stronger and happier personality in our children early on, it is very important to take advantage of this bond.

Most of us are aware that grandparents harbor a ton of love, magic in their pockets and an always ready inexhaustible smile that brings out the best in our children.

After the age of 3, children start to benefit a lot from a strong bond with their grandparents

From the age of 0 to 3, closeness with their mother and father is what a child needs most. This is the first social and affective circle in which they will consolidate their brain development and the need for attachment.

Communicative-emotional development is superior in children who grow up with their grandparents.

Let’s face it, grandparents have incredible energy. Seeing the arrival of a grandchild rejuvenates them by giving them a new role that they love. The role of affection provider, story teller, gift giver and guide of long walks through the park.

• Gone are their parenting days, they now don’t have to impose rules and regulations. This is no longer the grandparents’ role, and they are happy not to have it.
• They don’t want to have the authority that parents have. They guide their grandchildren permissively with a smell of vanilla and the warmth of spring afternoons filled with the taste of their grandchildren’s favorite food.
• These positive dynamics and wonderful reinforcements, stimulate language learning of our children. As we previously pointed out, children do not get the same stimulation at daycare.
• Grandparents interact with their grandkids constantly. Almost without knowing it, they become powerful architects of the child’s communicative abilities.

They leave a permanent emotional imprint on children.

In this world of hurry, chaotic moments, full of obligations for parents, grandparents have an exceptional virtue. They already know how to appreciate the “here and now”

• We can not forget that today’s grandparents are young people. They are in good physical condition with an eagerness to experiment, live, and to continue accumulating experience.
• Their knowledge gained through time has taught them what is important. They understand that the legacy they offer their grandchildren is above material good. The most important thing to do is to leave a positive emotional mark on their grandchildren.
• Children and grandparents move at the same pace. They appreciate the “here and now” more than anyone. They notice how insects scale up a flower. How drops of rain fall on the window. And how a piece of chocolate melts over a cup of warm milk.

Everything is magical and these moments are shared in wonderful complicity that give children a unique opportunity to learn. They learn about happiness without artifices and falsehoods.

Loved children are happy and safe children

That is the key and secret of education: children that are loved, valued and respected become happier adults because they develop better self-esteem.

Grandparents contribute primordially to this formula as long as they are solid. They need to be optimistic, wise and poised, able to ignite the hearts of all those around them.

So don’t doubt it, if your parents are made of this material, of stainless affection and inexhaustible love, allow them to develop this bond. The many shared moments between grandparents and grandchild are details, anecdotes and stores that your child will never forget.