Why William and Kate always do this in public with their kids
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are known for their modern approach to parenting as they encourage practices such as “active listening” and shy away from age old traditions - including Christmas at Sandringham last year, where George and Charlotte instead spent time with their Middleton grandparents.
However, William and Kate appear to be parenting in one traditional manner as photos of the family during their public appearances reveal.
When the family are in the public eye, William always looks after Prince George while Kate takes care of Princess Charlotte.
The family even stuck to this formant for the family Christmas card as George held on to his father’s hand while Charlotte stood in front of her mother.
The family arrangement is no coincidence and parenting expert Jasmine Peters told Femail that is a method used to set up George for his role as future King.
“Fathers are typically responsible for the disciplinary actions, redirection, protection and provision of the family,” she said.
“It is not uncommon to see a father with his son to set the foundation of what his role and responsibilities will be in life with a family. It is often believed that it takes a man to raise a boy to be a man. If you look at the pictures it clearly reflects this common belief.”
Jasmine believes that William and Kate’s format is instinctive and shows that they are loving parents.
“Yes, it could reflect that Kate and William are traditional, but it also reflects the importance of the bond created between father and son and mother and daughter that they both treasure and hold dearly as responsible and loving parents,” she explained.
“Children often equate their worth to the parent that looks like them.
“And any parent that understands how their bond will affect their child in the future when they become adults understands the importance of creating a strong bond early on in their childhood and youth.
“Although these pictures can look a bit traditional, William and Kate may also understand the importance of a son bonding with his father and a daughter bonding with her mother,” she said.
Jasmine said the set-up goes beyond gender roles and helps establish a solid foundation in children before they enter their youth and adulthood.
Lucy Shrimpton, The Sleepy Nanny and expert at The Baby Show, added that the eldest child tends to gravitate towards their father.
“The children are close in age and when the new baby depends heavily on Mum, it is natural for the toddler to gravitate towards dad who can provide more attention when mum is busy with the baby.”
“If George has spent extra time with dad because mum has had her hands full with a new baby, they may have built a father-son bond that has stuck.
“I believe the same would have happened even if they had a girl first and then a boy or even two girls. I imagine you would still see the older sibling with dad more and the younger with mum at this sort of age.
“It will be interesting to see how the dynamic changes again with baby number three,” she said.