Tackling Those Growing Strains

Sweet childhood of mine…

t can be the most incredible time in your life, when everything is blindingly shiny and intoxicatingly new, when the future is just a vast expanse of seemingly endless possibilities.

Being a kid in 2023 can also be crushing, crippling and incredibly confusing, one long popularity contest, with coverage of your latest form and ratings popping up on social media at all hours of the day or night.

There was a time when a Greystones rumour could take anywhere from a week to a month to reach every Tom, Deirdre and Paddy in town; today, thanks to the wondrous worldwide interweb, it’s old news in just under a second.

Which is why the local primary school principals at the core of It Takes A Village have been looking at ways of making sure our children have a childhood. Their suggestion of banning smartphones for primary school kids has sparked a thousand and one news reports, from Australia to America and beyond, whilst plans to have a child therapist available one day a week in schools to talk with children and parents have also been met with open arms and minds.

With their fun day down at The Cove happening next Saturday – more of which, here – the gang have also just announced a special workshop, Navigating Changes And Anxiety, aimed at parents whose kids might be having a little trouble navigating our rapidly-changing brave new world.

Taking place at Greystones Community National School on Thursday, September 28th, brainpower couple Niall Breslin and Louize Carroll will be the special guests on the night, the aim being to ‘help understand children’s emotions, build resilience, and create a supportive environment for growth’.

Which might just come in pretty dang handy later in life.

Kick-off is 7.30pm, tickets €5, and you can grab yours here. You can also find out more about It Takes A Village here, and book your €5 for Saturday, September 9th’s 1hr Holiday At The Cove right here.