I have four kids, and I have frequently attended conferences when they have come along. Perhaps it is not always optional to bring them, but the alternative would be to stay at home – and I don’t want that. Then I think it is better for me to go and try to balance work-life as good as I can and I adapt the trip to the kid so that they get a nice experience too.

When my youngest son was one years old he had been to many countries (nine?), and one result from us travelling so much with him is that he speaks OK English at the age of six. This is many years before he starts English at school.

The picture below is from Gothenburg and ICSE 2018 where I did a key note, and my husband attended one of the workshops on computer science education. We also met our very good colleague Tony Clear who helped Sixten try the conference T-shirt.

Some tips for making it work to bring kids: 

• Perhaps grand-parents have the possibility to travel with you to the conference with you? It could be a nice experience for them and for the kid
• If it doesn’t work 100% as expected that is quite normal. Having kids is often a bit like leaving the planning to someone else… 🙂
• If you go to the conference as a couple you can share responsibility for the kid. We often try to share the responsibility
• Plan something that the kid likes to do so that the trio becomes a positive experience for everyone
• Be prepared to replan things, and make up a plan B if plan A fails.