Teaching Important Morals & Values
Last month my little ones celebrated World Values Day at their school, which is an annual campaign to increase the awareness/practice of values around the world. The celebratory day made me wonder of how much focus I put into my little ones in preparing them with the necessary skills for school solely. This includes basic skills such as learning the alphabet letters/sounds and tracing along the letter/number lines. While those basic skills are important and make for a smooth transition into elementary school, it is their values and morals that lay the foundation of who they are during their school years and who they grow up to be one day. Below are a few ways of teaching your little ones important morals and values.
Honesty is Best:
During your little one’s kindergarten years, they will go through a phase of learning to lie. This phase will get rocket-fueled when they start elementary school, especially through the influence of their peers. Laying a foundation of the importance of honesty, prior, can really be effective. Toddler lying can come from a fear of being in trouble. Consequently, make an effort to listen to your little one and not punish them for telling the truth. Explain to your little one there will be greater negative consequences for lying rather than admitting their mistake.
Sharing is Caring:
Children need to learn the importance of sharing early on, so they can make friends and play cooperatively. Sharing teaches children about compromise and fairness. This will allow them to learn that if they give little to others, they can get some of what they want too. Since children learn a lot from just watching their parents, you can model or point out good sharing and turn-taking with other family members or friends. For example, “Your friend was sharing her toys with you. That was very kind of her.”
Respect Everyone:
Teaching children to treat and respect people of all races and backgrounds is our duty as parents. Like learning how to share, learning respect is also through example, as kids mirror the adults around them. To teach respect, first, we need to stay calm and in control no matter what situation arises. Do you speak to your spouse with respect? Do you speak to individuals with respect? Do you use your manners at all times? This will lay the basic groundwork of courtesy and respect.
Spread Kindness:
Naturally, children can seemingly have a propensity to engage in tit for tat, thus a swift retaliation with minimal impulse control. However, learning to respond and act with kindness, will allow them to de-escalate situations and regain prosperity in relationships. Choose books with kindness themes and read them out load, as it can invoke their imagination and influence their behavior without direct teaching. Additionally, play the compliment game with your little ones. Toss the ball to their sibling and have them give a compliment each time they throw the ball to one another. Besides, involve your little ones in volunteer work, such as cleaning out their closet or toys and donating them to others in need.
Showing Gratitude:
As your little ones grows from a toddler to a “big kid”, they are also moving from an ego-centric view of their surroundings to a more outward one. It is this specific time that they need to develop the value of gratitude, which is not an easy value to teach, but it can be done. You can lay the foundation of gratitude through simple actions to show appreciation, such as writing thank you notes for their birthday presents or encouraging them to reflect on the benefits of having everyday luxuries such as their tablet or meal.
Being Empathetic:
You might have heard the saying, “Before you criticize or judge someone, walk a mile in their shoes.” This quote is all about empathy. It is the ability to be aware of the feelings of others and imagine what it would be like in their position or “shoes”. Besides modeling empathy, like many values, empathy can be taught to your little one. After reading them a story, you may discuss the character’s feelings, were they sad, angry or happy. It’s also important to discuss their emotions and never punish them for feeling sad or angry. When your little one shows empathy, praise their behavior as it will encourage them to keep practicing it in the future.
Forgiveness:
Most children have a keen sense of justice and so its’s natural for them to hold on to a grudge. However, the only person this is negatively affecting is the child themselves. It’s important to remind your little one that forgiveness doesn’t mean forgetting or pretending it didn’t hurt. Be sure to acknowledge to your little one that you understand the way they feel, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t accept the other person’s apology.
Responsibility:
When your little one reaches the age of five, they should begin to learn the value of responsibility toward themselves and their belongings. Such skills need to be implemented early on, including encouraging them to take responsibility of carrying their own bag, remembering their mask or coat and putting their toys or things away after they’re done with them.
Expressing Love:
Last, but certainly not least, little ones should be surrounded with love. Expressing loving attitudes in children are only developed when they are shown love. When a parent demonstrates love with an affectionate spirit, your little one will learn to love others and themselves, as it is a value in and of itself.