Some things should definitely be taught at home. The school will also teach your child this, but shouldn’t be the only place they see or hear about it.
- Personal hygiene – Teach your child when to wash hands, bath themselves, brush their teeth and everything else that makes us presentable. This will also help to keep them healthy.
- Manners – This includes things like greeting people, saying please and thank you, chewing with a closed mouth, eating with cutlery, to not tease someone else etc.
- Sharing – Children are naturally self-centered and it’s normal for them to think that the world revolves around them. Teach them how to share, take turns and wait at home. This will make them good playmates and boost their social skills, in other words, other kids would like to play with them.
- Responsibility – Children should learn how to take responsibility for small stuff at home (like feeding the dog, cleaning their room or washing the dishes) in order to take responsibility for big stuff like their marks/future career.
- Independence – The golden rule is to never do something for your child that they can do themselves just because they are too lazy or you are in a rush. Independence gives them confidence.
- Values – When your child is between other people and kids where they are exposed to different beliefs and values, you want them to have a firm base. Teach them the values that are important for your family by being a role model and explaining it to them whenever there’s an opportunity.
- Sex education – You don’t want your child to get the wrong or age-inappropriate information from friends. Parents often avoid these talks which force kids to get the information elsewhere.
- A love for reading – Schools will teach your child how to read, but it’s your job at home to show them that it is an enjoyable activity. A child that loves reading doesn’t struggle to study. Read more about it here.
- To take chances and that it is okay to make mistakes – Kids are experiencing a lot of pressure at school nowadays and they should know that they are valued, that they are worth more than marks or sports performance and that they are allowed to make mistakes, that you will love them regardless. Only if they learn this at home, will they have the courage to try everything at school?
- To value education – Insist that they do homework and show them how education can open up doors for them in the future. This could mean that you can’t bad mouth your child’s teacher or that you can’t do their school projects for them…
What else do you think parents should teach at home?
