“That was the best day of my life.”
The importance of making memories.
Previous research shows that childhood memories, whether good or bad, play a significant role in shaping our personalities, behaviours, and even our physical health in adulthood. These memories can act as a kind of emotional compass, guiding our reactions, beliefs, and perspectives about the world. Children with a store of positive memories more often grow up to be adults with higher self-esteem, better coping mechanisms, and an overall positive outlook on life. And the importance of enduring memories was evident in the experiences in this project.
These memories can act as a kind of emotional compass, guiding our reactions, beliefs, and perspectives about the world.
“Giving these pupils the opportunity to see and experience things they normally wouldn't is fantastic and something they will remember for years and want to find out more about in the future.”
Sarah, local deputy head teacher.
New experiences and opportunities, shared collectively with others can facilitate collective memories, familial and peer bonding, and potentially create what academics call ‘thick sociality’ or ‘we-relationships’. Family trips can be an important resource for the creation of a shared experience, which is transformed into a familial memory shared by all members of the family unit. It is the telling and retelling of family memories that can be of great importance for children and young people, just as talking about shared experiences with friends can be
It shapes the insights they gain about themselves and their learning about the world around them and their place in it.
“I think when children come with their families, which I know sometimes they come in a group with the teachers, but when they come with their families, I imagine that when they go to bed that night a conversation between the adult and the child about ‘wasn't that show good and what about that moment?’ And I think it can make memories for a family as well so that they have something like, ‘do you remember when we went to sea’, so it gives a little bit of language for something that's about nothing whatever to do with the challenges in their life.”
David, local culture provider.
The benefits of making positive memories for children include greater emotional well-being, a sense of security, and a feeling of being loved and cared for. These positive emotions can help counterbalance the difficult experiences they may have faced. Creating positive memories can help build trust with the people around them as well as a sense of belonging and acceptance both in the household and outside.
