6 Practical Ways to Instill Good Values to your Children

Kathleen Tiu • November 4, 2019
Pasig Christian School

As what Theodore Roosevelt would say “To educate a person in mind and not morals is to educate a menace to society.”


A lot of people would think that values are impossible to teach, and it is certainly true that by just telling your kids to be more honest, diligent, considerate, does not work anymore. In the past years, schools have tried to add more character development curriculum, but schools have a tough time teaching kids the values because they are often at odds with what the child learned at home.


Remember that children learn values by observing what you do and drawing conclusions about what you think is important in life. Regardless of what you consciously teach them, your children will emerge from childhood with clear views on what their parents really value, and with a well-developed value system of their own.


So here’s 6 ways to instill good values to your children:


1. BE A GOOD ROLE MODEL – It isn’t what you say, it’s what you do. Showing what you want your kids to be is the best way to teach them the values that you want them to learn.

If you tell your kids that basketball is fun, but your first question is about who won the game, then they’ll learn that winning is more important than anything else. If you talk about honesty but lie about their age to get cheaper ticket into the amusement park, it not only puts your child in an uncomfortable position, they will also lean that cheating is okay under certain circumstances.

2. PRACTICE GOOD WORDS – It will come natural for children to say good things always when it is instilled inside the household.

3. HOLD YOUR CHILDREN ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR MISTAKES – Your children may get themselves into trouble now and then. You will be tempted to rush in and immediately try to “make things better” for them, but don’t! Let your child be liable for their own actions, do not take charge whenever there is an unfortunate event that happened with your child, in this way you will help them learn to be more responsible and careful with their actions and decisions.

4. DEVELOP EMPATHY – Empathy is the foundation of compassion, which is the foundation of values. The only way kids can learn empathy is by being treated emphatically and by watching you respond to other with compassion and kindness.

5. DON’T LET YOUR CHILDREN TAKE THE EASY WAY OUT OF CHALLENGES – If your kid committed to doing something, they need to follow through on that. You don’t want them to be quitters when the “going gets though”. Let them finish what they started!

You can only show your support by giving them advice or suggestions, in this way they will learn when they fail.

6. APPRECIATE GOOD BEHAVIOR – When you see your child demonstrate a value that is important to you, recognize your child for it, as specifically as possible.

If you see your kid cheers up his/her friend say “I noticed how kind you were to Ben when you tried to cheer him up.”, In this way they will feel that what they are doing is nice and that they should do it more in the future, but don’t give them money when they do things you want, because they might look for money whenever they do good things when they grow up.

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