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Top ten ways to teach values to your kids |
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by Mark Brandenburg
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- Tell them
your life stories and teach through your stories
Kids love to hear stories about your childhood.
Weave in some moral dilemmas and you’ve got great
opportunities to teach values to them. It certainly
beats lecturing your kids!
- Live your
own life according to your values—walk the talk.
Kids learn by imitating, especially at a
young age. They are very adept at seeing if what you
say and what you do are matching up. Don’t give them
confusing signals; follow your own values every
moment.
- Expose
them to your religion or faith
It seems especially important today to let
them know that they’re not alone. Providing your
kids with a community of faith will strengthen their
values and provide parents some “leverage”
- Pay
attention to who else might be teaching values to
your kids
Get to know your child’s teachers, coaches,
relatives, etc. Anyone who spends time with your
kids may be influencing them. Know their values and
beliefs as well.
- Ask your
kids questions that will stimulate dialogue about
values
Telling them what values they should have
won’t always be effective, especially when your kids
get older. Asking them “curious” questions will
allow discussions that will eventually lead to
values. “What did you think about that fight,” may
be more effective than, “He shouldn’t have started
that fight!”
- Talk to
them about values in a relaxed and easy way
Nothing will turn your kids off more than preaching
values to them after they’ve screwed up! Talk to
them when everyone’s relaxed, and do it in a light,
conversational manner. They’ll be much more likely
to be listening rather than tuning you out.
- Read them
fairy tales when they’re younger
Fairy tales capture the imagination of kids and can
easily lead to a discussion of values. Kids will
learn the most concerning values when they’re
excited about the topic.
- Involve
your kids in art, activities, or helping others
while limiting TV and video games
Kids learn values when they experience them. Allow
them to experience helping others and involve them
in activities that will expand their creativity.
- Have
frequent conversations about values in your
household
This lets your kids know that it’s important and
it’s not just something you talk about when they do
something wrong.
- Have high
expectations for your kids’ value systems
Kids will tend to rise to the level of
expectation you have for them. Their value system
will often reflect yours if the expectations are
high.
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Article Source: http://www.secretsofsuccess.com |
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