Teach Children Good Work Habits

Why?

When the family realizes that by working together there will be extra time to spend having fun, they will be more willing to leave old habits behind in favor of the new.

What?

Ultimately, our greatest purpose is to teach our children good work habits do not just to get the family room picked up before we go crazy. With the greater goal in mind, we must teach our children habits that form the basis of necessary life skills through our guidance, supervision and cooperation. From this broader perspective, a parent's role becomes that of teacher.

Who?

Parents, relatives and child care providers have experiences and lessons to share with the children. We care about their character formation, skill development and general happiness more than anyone else. It is our responsibility to plant the seeds of good judgment, thoughtful consideration and self-reliance in all areas of daily family life. Organizations like school, Girl Scouts, YMCA or sports only supplements the education that parents ultimately give.

Where?

It might help to think of your home as an apprenticeship shop, where your children work and learn by your side the skills and attributes necessary to succeed in life. They not only need to learn practical skills—such as making a bed, sewing on a button or cooking a meal—they also need to learn the more intangible lessons of life. It is crucial that they experience the art of cooperation and the importance of finishing a job, following a schedule and working even when they don’t want to. These are abilities they will need every day for the rest of their lives.

When?

Children must also learn to assume personal responsibility for their choices, decisions and actions on a daily basis. By holding a family council or planning session on a weekly basis, everyone will have a voice and choice in goal setting. This is also the time to determine what the consequences are of not doing their share. One of the most important parts of teaching children to work is to have them assume "ownership" of a task. They may not want to do the job exactly as you would, so if it is their job to take out the garbage each day, you need to not step in and take over.

How?

The best method for teaching is to model the behavior. Some children are auditory learners and can just be told. Most however, are visual or kinesthetic and must be shown a number of times how to do a task in an acceptable manner. Notice, I did not say perfect manner. Learning to make a bed and assuming personal responsibility are on going projects and expectations must be realistic.

If you enjoyed this parenting article taken from the book Kids, Chores & More , you will want to read more at www.KidsChoresAndMore.com Judy H. Wright, family relations coach invites you to sign up for the free newsletter- The Artichoke-Finding the heart of the story in the journey of life at www.ArtichokePress.com You will be glad you did and so will we.

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