How to Raise a Respectful Child
All parents want their children to grow up to be kind, considerate, respectful people. On the days your children are hurling abuse at one another in a sibling skirmish, or charging through the freshly mopped hallway in muddy trainers, respect might seem like a bit of a distant fantasy. Don’t stress, there are some things you can do to introduce a culture of respect into your household and to teach your children the value of being considerate towards others. To help get you started, we have teamed up with a college in London who have shared the following advice.
An important family lesson to teach is that you’ve got to give respect to receive it, and this applies to parents too. Kids copy your behaviour and will deal with problems using the examples, you have set for them. If you frequently lose your cool and end up raising your voice to settle conflict, it shouldn’t come as a shock if your children also shout or scream when they’re upset too. Get into the habit of speaking to your children politely, even when their behaviour is challenging. This doesn’t mean you can’t be firm or that you let them do whatever they want, but it teaches them healthier, more constructive ways to express their emotions and shows that shouting isn’t the answer to getting their own way.
Of course, no one is perfect and every now and then we might be a bit snappier with our kids than we would like. Set a good example by apologising for losing your temper and explain to them why you felt so frustrated. This will help them to realise how their behaviour affected you, and also shows them that owning up and apologising when you’ve done something wrong is the right thing to do. You could say something like ‘I’m sorry I raised my voice earlier; I was frustrated that you’d spilt the cereal on the floor and left it there after I’d just cleaned the kitchen. Please could you be more considerate in the future.’ Breaking down situations and explaining how they made you feel helps children to empathise and recognise that other people have complex feelings just as they do.
