Family-Friendly Spaces Activities

In the summer of 2019, 30 factories are participating in our Family-Friendly Spaces program. These factories have transformed spaces in the premises into fantastic childcare facilities for the children of their workers. The factories hire specialist teachers and supervisors to take care of the children during the workday and they provide opportunities for the children to learn and play. Take a look at some of the activities going on at Family-Friendly Spaces over the course of the summer.Download our Impacts & Achievements Briefing to learn about the benefits the program has had on children, parents, and factories.Teaching children new technologiesA participating factory which specializes in electronics took the opportunity to teach the children about innovative technology. The factory hired teachers with expertise to come and teach children about new 3D printing technology. The children got creative using 3D printing pens to bring their imagination to life. This was a great opportunity for the children, especially from rural areas, to use new technology that they may not have had the opportunity to experience before.Learning how to make sweet treats in the kitchenOne factory taught the children some tasty life skills in the form of baking!The children received cooking lessons to learn how to make local cakes and egg tarts.This was a fantastic chance for the children to experience baking and gain an appreciation for where their food comes from.Migrant Parents Training workshops for participating parents Molly Jiang from our Program Support and Engagement team joined a migrant parents training workshop hosted by a participating factory. Some of the parents whose children are attending the Family-Friendly Spaces, hadn’t really spent much time with their children before. So this summer, when they are seeing their children every day, some of them struggle with communicating with them and this can result in conflict. The workshops taught the parents skills to better communicate with their children, how to praise them when they are doing well, encouraging parents to speak positively to their children. Having fun with LEGOThe LEGO Group's team visited 6 factories participating in the Family-Friendly Spaces program. The team hosted a special LEGO course for the children in these factories. The LEGO course consisted of playing games and team building activities. The children really enjoyed it and it was a great opportunity for members of the LEGO team to see the impact their sponsorship of the program is having on the children participating. A fun day out at a Museum and AquariumTwo Family-Friendly Spaces organized some exciting off-site excursions for the children. The children enjoyed trips to a museum and an aquarium. The children were amazed to see what they had learnt from textbooks in front of their own eyes. Financial literacy classesAs well as fun outings, one Family-Friendly Space took a more practical approach by introducing children to a key skill that would have a positive long-term impact on their lives: financial literacy.The one-day financial literacy workshop taught children the concepts of money and money management, with an introduction to spending and saving. Helping to build the foundations at an early age of a skill that will help the children make better financial decisions throughout their lives.Providing one child with his first ever toy of his ownTeachers and supervisors at one Family-Friendly Spaces noticed that a five-year-old boy was putting toys into his backpack after class to take them home with him. The teacher talked to him and learned that the little boy’s parents had never bought him a toy before. He enjoyed playing with all the fun toys at the Family-Friendly Space and he wanted to take a few toys home so that he would have toys to play with after the summer break. When the teacher and supervisor understood the reasons behind the child’s behavior, they explained to the little boy that taking things home from the spaces is not allowed. They encouraged him that if he behaved well, he would receive a toy as a reward. This little boy followed his promise and a week later he received the very first toy that truly belongs to him.Teaching children they can be anything with MattelThe Mattel team visited participating factories to meet the children and organize a day of activities designed to inspire them to dream big.The children were provided with toys from Barbie and Thomas the Tank Engine as an inspiration for the imagination and introduced to the idea that they can be anything. They were encouraged to illustrate their dream careers with their peers via a painting workshop.The children also enjoyed a special workshop about love and families, designed to help them understand how much their parents love and care about them. At the end of the workshop, they made origami heart as a gift of appreciation to give to their parents.