What's your skill to share?

When we welcome dads, male carers and kids into any session we'll always take time to introduce the activities on that day as every session's activities are different, along with who's leading them, so everyone is aware of what's on offer and can choose what they would like to do first. Safeguarding, responsibilities and image recording are also mandatory, but we'll get into that stuff in another post…

We all have brilliant skills that are unique to us. Some get paid to share or apply their skills, whilst others consider them hobbies, or things we do when not in work. We might not even consider them skills worthy of sharing, but as we're all wonderfully different, what one person considers a normal or everyday skill, others may marvel at.

Sir Ken Robinson - education innovator - argued that every person has unique talents buried within them, and that the role of education and community is to create the right conditions for those talents to surface and flourish. His TED Talk "Do Schools Kill Creativity?" is the most watched TED Talk of all time and well worth a watch if you've not seen it already.

"Many highly talented, brilliant, creative people think they're not - because the thing they were good at at school wasn't valued, or was actually stigmatised."Sir Ken Robinson

We're always keen to stress that there's no right or wrong way of doing things, not because we don't have a plan or system, quite the opposite - because we believe it's up to everyone to invent what works for them. Giving fathers, carers and children the agency to work things out for themselves, to invent new ways of doing things that specifically works for them is far more empowering than dictating their approach. The adult and child become inventors of the plan, system or outcome that offers both ownership along with the pleasure of co-creating and making things entirely their own.

There are 4 standard Dads Kids Club questions: How are you doing? How are your kids? What have you learnt today? What skills would you like to share next time? We've seen hundreds of brave dads, grandads and male carers step up and share their skills; fire breathing, sourdough bread making and indoor top rope climbing are some of the more extreme examples. 

At a recent session a dad said he didn't have much to share other than fixing punctures, which for any cyclist could be a life saver. Another dad at the session said he too had little to share until the final minutes of the day when he offered to lead the adjudication of the art and Lego competitions, which is no easy task in front of a room of screaming kids snatching at the prizes of sweets. This dad invented the 'Judgeometer' in front of us all. He set out the rules and waved his hand slowly in front of all the entries encouraging the crowd to cheer for those they liked most, and the ones that got the most cheers won. We've since introduced the Judgeometer to other clubs to the same great effect, making that dad with little skills to share a living legend!

So - what's the skill you've been sitting on that could make you a living legend at your next Dads Kids Club?

Scott

I'm Scott. Founder of Dads Kids Club. We're a dad-led Community Interest Company that invites men to get more involved in their kids' education - improving children's educational engagement, men's mental health and life opportunities for both. 

We invite, train and mobilise dads, step-dads, grandads, uncles and male carers to co-run screen-free, hands-on Saturday clubs at their children's primary schools. Men share skills, connect and bond. Children enjoy beyond-the-curriculum activities - building confidence, new skills and memories that last. We celebrate all masculinities, backgrounds, identities and beliefs.

If you work in education, family services, philanthropy or simply believe in what happens when dads show up - I'd love to connect.

📧 info@dadskids.club 🌐@DadsKidsClub (on Instagram)