This year, Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day falls on Thursday, April 22. If your workplace is planning something for the day, you're probably filled with equal parts excitement and fear. Will it be a wonderful opportunity to strengthen the parent-child bond and impress your colleagues with the fine young citizen(s) you're raising? Or will your kid puke on the carpet, unplug the server, and make rude comments about your coworkers?
For most of us, it's a crapshoot.
Given the wide variety of workplaces, there's no single agenda for Take Your Kids to Work Day. Certain occupations don’t even invite this kind of participation. If you're a medical examiner, a proctologist, or a fighter pilot, for example, you should probably just explain your job in kid-friendly terms, and maybe show them where you work, but not let them give it a try.
Most office-based jobs are suitable for kids, and many companies schedule events and activities for employees' children. In this article, 5 Steps to a Perfect Bring Your Child to Work Day, author Katherine Lewis points out that it can be a great chance to show your kids what you really do, "since many children believe mom and dad just play on the computer and talk on the phone all day long."
She also points out that the young'uns will be delighted by many of the things you probably consider mundane, such as commuting, getting a cup of coffee, or taking a lunch break. (And can anything match the thrill of pushing elevator buttons?)
Here at Pongo, we've been planning a special morning that includes interactive projects, pizza with the CEO, and cookie decorating. And just for fun, we'll also be recording some video interviews with the kids.
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