One of the biggest challenges parents face today is teaching children to have respect for the world around them. It is not an easy task and less so in the society we live in. A society full of contamination, individualism, materialism and where the superficial seems to be more important than the real or good values.
It is not as easy as saying 'respect is very important so you have to be respectful'. Not at all. The development in a child always goes beyond words, it is the actions and how you behave that really teach children what respect is.
Respect in children
Respect means putting value in someone or something and responding accordingly. When you value your friends, for example, you treat them kindly. When you value your community, you avoid littering. Although respect is a concept that can be difficult to understand, it is important to help your child understand what it means to be respectful. Because of this, it is important for parents to understand what it takes to help a child develop respect for other people, for themselves, and for the world around them.
Being parents is a complicated task and perhaps with so many responsibilities you have not stopped to think about the importance of teaching your children good manners and above all, the importance of respect in their lives. It is necessary that you teach your child what respect is with actions so that, throughout his life, he can start thinking of ways to understand the value and meaning of respect.
Show respect
You are the best example of your children and they learn through imitation. Your children will learn to demonstrate and imitate behavior as soon as you start doing it. If you treat the people around you with respect, your children will pick up on that and act accordingly with the people around them, including yourself. Nevertheless, If you talk to other people in bad ways or ignore their opinions and points of view, your children will choose that behavior to imitate.
Although it is true that people are not perfect, you must make sure that your behavior is valuable and that they will always teach your children good things. If you are a person who argues, you are fat, aggressive ... then you should think about how to improve your behavior to be a good example for your children. There are many ways you can show respect in everyday life.
Talk about respect with your children
You need to explain to your children what respect is and why it is so important to take it into account both in the family and in society. Since children are very young they should become familiar with this term. This can be something as simple as talking about the importance of sharing toys or not taking something from another child.
It could be more complex, like explaining why you need to be courteous or nice to other people. When you start the conversation about respect, your children will feel more comfortable exploring this topic with you. Most importantly, they will be able to ask you questions about what it really means to show respect for others. and then they will want to see that example in you.
Once you have reached this point, you must show him on a day-to-day basis what respect is and how you do have it for the people around you. When you have the opportunity each day, explain examples of respect that you have made.