In the last episode of ‘The Family Project’ on RTÉ One, Yvonne Keating helps the Barry family from Kilkenny put together a ‘Life book’ in the hope that brothers Dylan and Cameron can mend their strained relationship.
The Barry Family live in Loughboy, County Kilkenny, where single mum Andrea is raising her two boys – three year old Cameron and eight year old Dylan.
“The problem in the house at the moment is that Cameron and Dylan don’t get on as brothers,” says Andrea.
With three children of her own, Yvonne Keating is no stranger to the challenges of motherhood.
“I think the difficulties of being a single mother is that when you’re on your own with your children you are doing everything independently so it would be great to have a second pair of hands but you don’t. I’m not an expert but my kids are a bit older and they have similar age gaps and I can see how that can affect the dynamics between them, it can be a bit of challenge,” says Yvonne.
Yvonne is hoping she will be able to lend a helping hand to Andrea and her family and find a way of bringing them together to form a stronger family unit. “I’m hoping first of all that I can listen to her and understand her and if she gets one or two things from me or if I can help at all I’ll be thrilled,” says Yvonne.
Over a number of weeks Yvonne works with Andrea and her kids to make a ‘Life Book’ together in their local Adult Education Centre WordAid in Kilkenny. A ‘Life Book’ tells the story of a family in their own words using photos, artwork and things picked up along the way.
Working together on the book creates a natural opportunity for Andrea and her children to talk about and celebrate their lives, bringing them closer as a family.
The Family Project follows families from around Ireland working together to overcome educational issues that affect their lives. They work together with educational experts and well-known mentors to find a way to overcome the problem, bringing them closer as a family.
The Family Project, Monday 30 June 2014, 7.30pm on RTÉ One
The Family Project
With children only spending about 15% of their time in school, The Family Project aims to show parents how to do more in the home to help their kids learn in fun and engaging ways.
In each episode, a celebrity mentor works with the family to complete a project that has special significance to them. By working together and being open to learning new things, the families achieve results they could never have imagined.
Each family is also guided by the input and teaching of Ireland’s best education experts. These experts devise a learning activity and give the families the techniques and tools to achieve this. They show ways that they can all work together, and will set a target or goal that the family can realistically achieve. The experts are from the same area as the family, to show that local resources are available to everyone in Ireland.
Since 2000, the National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA) has been using the mass medium of television to highlight literacy issues, outline supports that are available, motivate people to return to education and provide opportunities for learning in the privacy of their own home.
ENDS
For media queries please contact:
For media queries please contact:
Melanie O’Connor Clare McNally
RTÉ TV Press and Publicity National Adult Literacy Agency
01 208 2787 01 412 7909 / 087 648 6292
melanie.o’connor@rte.ie cmcnally@nala.ie
