As any loving parent knows, the world outside the home can be challenging for your children. They are faced with tough decisions that can affect every aspect of their lives— either positively or negatively. The thought of this can be quite terrifying and leave you wondering how to prepare your child for the journey ahead. Teaching your children the values they need to survive and succeed in the real world ensures they are well-equipped. Also, teaching your children values helps them identify their purpose and how they can be better people. But what’s the best way to communicate this message to your children?
Here are four tips you should consider in instilling values in your children.
Explain and define what values are
The first step you should take when teaching your child about values is to ensure that they understand what this means and why they are important. It is important to let them understand that values play an important role in shaping a person’s life, who they are, and what they accomplish. It is also important to lay out the values you want to instill in them. Without a clear outline of what to do, you couldn’t track their accomplishments or what they need assistance with. On the other hand, your children will not know what is expected of them or be able to practice the values they are taught effectively. You may consider having your family’s values aesthetically displayed in areas where everyone can easily read them, such as the entryway, kitchen, or living room. This way, all are away from what is expected of them.
Be an example
Your children look up to you for guidance, so your actions and inactions are vital. As you may already know, your little ones are like sponges— soaking up the habits and happenings of their environment. Therefore, if you want your child to pick on a habit, it should start with you. When teaching your children about values, it is vital to ensure that you practice what you preach. You must have a self of right and wrong and an established code of conduct you follow. However, you must ensure that these measures are realistic and achievable. This is because teaching your child about a set of values they do not see you following would be challenging. For example, if you teach them to be kind, you should ensure that they witness your generosity, which encourages them to do the same.
Read books and stories together
A fun and interactive way of teaching your children about values is through stories. Not only does it provide a wonderful opportunity to bond with your children, but it also allows them to enjoy learning something new. Through books, you can teach your little one about the beauty of kindness, the importance of respect, or the rewards of being courageous. These stories would ignite a desire in your child to be like the heroes of these stories and better understand the importance of having values through the moral lessons they deliver. Fortunately, there are several stories that teach about values and their importance, such as “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” or the “Lion and the Mouse.” There are also several stories you can tell from a religious viewpoint. For instance, if you’re a Christian family, you can read parables, stories, and bible verses about family, love, kindness, respect, and so on.
Encourage problem-solving
You can only determine if your lessons with your child are effective when there are real-life situations. For instance, you may be talking to your child about the importance of being respectful, but you can only determine if this is effective if they are in a situation where they must show respect. This is why you should consider incorporating and encouraging problem-solving activities. With these activities, you give your child real-life scenarios and assumptions and discuss how they would approach them. Another way to engage in problem-solving is to encourage incidental learning. With this approach, you refer your child to a previous event or scenario they were in and help them identify ways they could handle it better. These activities give your child a real sense of the values they are to follow, the repercussions of doing otherwise, and the benefits of complying.
In today’s rapidly changing world, it is understandable that you are worried about the well-being of your child. Teaching them the right values would ensure they get by safely, make the right decisions, be reliable and accountable, and be exemplary citizens.
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