After a foundation is laid, you will need to add a strong structure to fortify their growth.
Articles are updated frequently.
These sections are organized by age level, but the information is not restricted to that age group. Consider looking at other age ranges as well. Also, make sure to check out the Archives.
Articles are updated frequently.
These sections are organized by age level, but the information is not restricted to that age group. Consider looking at other age ranges as well. Also, make sure to check out the Archives.
Teach Honesty to Your Children
Start talking about honesty early in your children’s lives; you establish honesty and truthfulness as a core value in your home. Do not lie yourself. Model what to do more than what you say. Be careful even with “little white lies.” Your children are listening and learning. Search for ways to tell the truth. Talk about your own struggles as you were growing up and even now as you work and interact with other people.
All kids lie, but don’t let it slide. Truth is what is real. Explain how lying breaks trust and hurts relationships. “Families need to be able to believe what they tell each other is true." (haymarketca.com) Parents need to be the first examples of honesty for their children as the children grow. Even though some things are hard to talk about, parents need to think through their answers making sure the information they give their children truthfully is age appropriate.
Parents should not ask questions when they know the answer. Kids will lie to avoid getting into trouble or making you angry. Let them know you already know the truth.
Try not to label your children as “liar.” They will begin to believe you and act accordingly. Tell them how you do not like lies and give them an opportunity to explain why they lie. Practice calm discipline. If your children suspect that you will have a strong emotional reaction to what they have done, that you will be harsh, yelling or punitive, children will avoid telling the truth. If children continue to lie to you, make the consequences known to them and even make them greater.
Make it so it is not worth it to lie. (10 Ways to Teach Your Children to Be Honest - All Pro Dad”)
In order to recognize a person or friend as trustworthy, your children must first be able to detect truth or lies in others. Watch what people do rather than what they say. Watch their faces and their body language. If your children sense inconsistency, encourage them to walk away. Teach them other ways to take action to make themselves safe. Older kids need to learn to trust themselves, their own intuition. Never let peer pressure sway your children from doing the right thing. If your children see their friend cheating, they should tell their friend before reporting it to the teacher. Cheating on tests is still cheating. All kids have the right to say “no” and “seek help” advises TIME magazine.
Learn what is true in order to do what is right. - IdleHearts
Praise honesty and reward it. Telling the truth takes courage when lying would be easier. If you reward truth, you build your children’s self-confidence and reinforce positive behavior.
Truth is a deep kindness that teaches us to be content in our everyday life and share with the people the same happiness.
Khalil Gibran
Establish a Consistent Routine
Are you frustrated trying to keep your family to a routine that enables you to get out of the house on time in the morning? Are mornings hectic at your home as you try to get your children up and going? Maybe establishing a consistent routine is what is needed to keep your sanity and help you begin a good day every day.
A consistent routine gives you and your children power and control and is worth investing your time and effort. It needs to begin your daily activities and opens time for emergencies or new challenges. It is good for all to combat stress and anxiety and brings structure to your lives. Letting your children know your expectations appropriate for your child’s age is important for a positive parent-child relationship.
Every day is a journey, and you need to know the best route to complete it. cdc.gov
Routines reflect your family’s values and help your children know what is important to you as a family. No two family’s routines will be the same and each to unique and valuable to yours.
Beginning each day with the same routine until it becomes a habit takes will power and determination, effort, and patience, but if you do this early in the school year, you will reap great rewards and have happier, well-adjusted children. When kids are able to predict how their morning will go, they feel more secure and in turn, make better choices. It also helps them to know limits and boundaries. There are no video games at all in the morning. Do not let your children hijack your routine. If your older children finish their breakfast before the younger children, let them review their homework or read a book which they can put down quickly when it is time to catch the bus or their ride.
If your routine is inconsistent, it becomes confusing for your children. They may develop aggression and hostility or complacency and passivity. They begin to establish bad habits that are difficult to break and give you headaches and more problems. Such behaviors increase stress and anxiety for all of you to begin your days.
Structure and routines help kids learn to control their behaviors. Getting the whole family on a schedule eliminates power struggles and gives your children a sense of security. It promotes self-discipline even if it is not their favorite thing, but necessary. It helps parents maintain consistency.
Choosing clothes and getting backpacks with completed homework, permission slips, and lunches or lunch money ready the night before and by the door may work. Shoes and jackets can be put there also.
Few rules rarely bended, but with flexibility as called for, is suggested by Jessica Orlick at kidscreektherapy.com. The website premieracademyinc.com offers Six Benefits of a Consistent Routine if you as parents need help. Just do your best and keep trying.
Give Your Children Money Lessons
Too many of us and our children have gotten caught in traps that money has caused, or rather the lack of money knowledge. It is up to parents to help their children avoid these traps. When you are having conversations with your children, include those about money often.
esperian.com suggests the following steps to help children manage their money.
Talk to your children as you shop. Let them see you compare prices on the things you buy, even cereal and bread. Use coupons to save money. Allow your children to look for and cut out coupons for cereal, household, and personal items. Show them how using coupons saves money. Let them hand their money and coupons proudly to the cashier.
Help your children make healthy choices. Look for the best prices iton newspaper or magazine ads and online for the things they want. Help them to save their own money for the desired item or ask for it as a future gift.
When your children see you using your digital devices to pay, help them to know it is not money at the touch of a button but money that is deducted from your checking or savings account. If you use a credit card, show them you are borrowing money that you have to pay back.
Give your children lessons about money for their future lives. Talk about money daily, give your children guidance and help them make smart money decisions.
Start talking about honesty early in your children’s lives; you establish honesty and truthfulness as a core value in your home. Do not lie yourself. Model what to do more than what you say. Be careful even with “little white lies.” Your children are listening and learning. Search for ways to tell the truth. Talk about your own struggles as you were growing up and even now as you work and interact with other people.
All kids lie, but don’t let it slide. Truth is what is real. Explain how lying breaks trust and hurts relationships. “Families need to be able to believe what they tell each other is true." (haymarketca.com) Parents need to be the first examples of honesty for their children as the children grow. Even though some things are hard to talk about, parents need to think through their answers making sure the information they give their children truthfully is age appropriate.
Parents should not ask questions when they know the answer. Kids will lie to avoid getting into trouble or making you angry. Let them know you already know the truth.
Try not to label your children as “liar.” They will begin to believe you and act accordingly. Tell them how you do not like lies and give them an opportunity to explain why they lie. Practice calm discipline. If your children suspect that you will have a strong emotional reaction to what they have done, that you will be harsh, yelling or punitive, children will avoid telling the truth. If children continue to lie to you, make the consequences known to them and even make them greater.
Make it so it is not worth it to lie. (10 Ways to Teach Your Children to Be Honest - All Pro Dad”)
In order to recognize a person or friend as trustworthy, your children must first be able to detect truth or lies in others. Watch what people do rather than what they say. Watch their faces and their body language. If your children sense inconsistency, encourage them to walk away. Teach them other ways to take action to make themselves safe. Older kids need to learn to trust themselves, their own intuition. Never let peer pressure sway your children from doing the right thing. If your children see their friend cheating, they should tell their friend before reporting it to the teacher. Cheating on tests is still cheating. All kids have the right to say “no” and “seek help” advises TIME magazine.
Learn what is true in order to do what is right. - IdleHearts
Praise honesty and reward it. Telling the truth takes courage when lying would be easier. If you reward truth, you build your children’s self-confidence and reinforce positive behavior.
Truth is a deep kindness that teaches us to be content in our everyday life and share with the people the same happiness.
Khalil Gibran
Establish a Consistent Routine
Are you frustrated trying to keep your family to a routine that enables you to get out of the house on time in the morning? Are mornings hectic at your home as you try to get your children up and going? Maybe establishing a consistent routine is what is needed to keep your sanity and help you begin a good day every day.
A consistent routine gives you and your children power and control and is worth investing your time and effort. It needs to begin your daily activities and opens time for emergencies or new challenges. It is good for all to combat stress and anxiety and brings structure to your lives. Letting your children know your expectations appropriate for your child’s age is important for a positive parent-child relationship.
Every day is a journey, and you need to know the best route to complete it. cdc.gov
Routines reflect your family’s values and help your children know what is important to you as a family. No two family’s routines will be the same and each to unique and valuable to yours.
Beginning each day with the same routine until it becomes a habit takes will power and determination, effort, and patience, but if you do this early in the school year, you will reap great rewards and have happier, well-adjusted children. When kids are able to predict how their morning will go, they feel more secure and in turn, make better choices. It also helps them to know limits and boundaries. There are no video games at all in the morning. Do not let your children hijack your routine. If your older children finish their breakfast before the younger children, let them review their homework or read a book which they can put down quickly when it is time to catch the bus or their ride.
If your routine is inconsistent, it becomes confusing for your children. They may develop aggression and hostility or complacency and passivity. They begin to establish bad habits that are difficult to break and give you headaches and more problems. Such behaviors increase stress and anxiety for all of you to begin your days.
Structure and routines help kids learn to control their behaviors. Getting the whole family on a schedule eliminates power struggles and gives your children a sense of security. It promotes self-discipline even if it is not their favorite thing, but necessary. It helps parents maintain consistency.
Choosing clothes and getting backpacks with completed homework, permission slips, and lunches or lunch money ready the night before and by the door may work. Shoes and jackets can be put there also.
Few rules rarely bended, but with flexibility as called for, is suggested by Jessica Orlick at kidscreektherapy.com. The website premieracademyinc.com offers Six Benefits of a Consistent Routine if you as parents need help. Just do your best and keep trying.
Give Your Children Money Lessons
Too many of us and our children have gotten caught in traps that money has caused, or rather the lack of money knowledge. It is up to parents to help their children avoid these traps. When you are having conversations with your children, include those about money often.
esperian.com suggests the following steps to help children manage their money.
Talk to your children as you shop. Let them see you compare prices on the things you buy, even cereal and bread. Use coupons to save money. Allow your children to look for and cut out coupons for cereal, household, and personal items. Show them how using coupons saves money. Let them hand their money and coupons proudly to the cashier.
Help your children make healthy choices. Look for the best prices iton newspaper or magazine ads and online for the things they want. Help them to save their own money for the desired item or ask for it as a future gift.
When your children see you using your digital devices to pay, help them to know it is not money at the touch of a button but money that is deducted from your checking or savings account. If you use a credit card, show them you are borrowing money that you have to pay back.
Give your children lessons about money for their future lives. Talk about money daily, give your children guidance and help them make smart money decisions.