Parenting is difficult and takes a lot of work. However, that doesn’t mean that you can skip out on teaching your kids about boundaries and forming healthy habits. Don’t worry, it’s not too difficult to do.
Remember to Communicate
Communication is the foundation of teaching your child anything. Not only do you need to communicate what you need from your child, but you also have to teach your child how they can communicate with you. Having a solid way of communicating allows both of you to be able to set boundaries and how to respect those boundaries.
Be a Role Model
Your children learn a lot just from watching you. If you demonstrate having good boundaries and setting good habits, your kids will learn how to do so from watching. You might even see your children setting their own habits and communicating boundaries with each other. When being a role model, don’t be afraid to describe to your child what you are doing step-by-step. Even if they don’t fully understand everything that you are describing, the explanations will help them mimic you.
Set Rules
This falls under communication but be sure that your children know what the ground rules are. Rules can also help your child form healthy habits such as having a specific time every day to do homework. Ground rules can give your child a healthy amount of direction along with structure. Just make sure that you still give your child plenty of time to do fun activities and play.
Always Explain the “Why?”
Saying “because I said so” is never helpful when trying to get your child to do a task. Instead, it creates confusion and resentment. Children are much smarter than people give them credit for, and they want to understand why they are doing the task they’ve been told to do.
Explaining the why allows them to understand what they are doing and why it’s important. It also allows them to ask any questions that they have. Explaining the why is important when getting your child to respect a boundary, form a habit, and it will give you both a stronger bond.
Be Kind
No matter what, be kind to your child while they are learning. Yelling creates fear and makes your child not want to do the task at all. Being kind gives you a chance to better communicate and encourage your child with boundaries and habits.