If you want your children to flourish (both academically and on a personal level) it is important that they understand the difference between wrong and right and how to treat people in an appropriate way. They need to understand what it means to be a hard-working, considerate person. A lot of this comes down to the moral values that you teach them, which can be explored within your home throughout their childhood. These can be things like saying please and thank you, being helpful, being truthful and being kind. An independent day school in Oxford have put together the following advice for you.
The type of people that your children grow up to be often stems back to the type of behaviour that you, and other influential people, demonstrate in front of them when they are young. For instance, if you want them to be honest, kind and have good manners then you will need to display these values when you’re around them. Basically, it comes down to you being a good role model and allowing your children to observe positive behaviour that they can replicate. As an example, if you’re in a restaurant and the waitress messes up your order, refrain from being rude and aggressive towards her and instead remain calm and well-mannered. Show your kids polite ways to hold a conversation with others and the importance of offering a helping hand to those who need it.
Help your children determine the differences between respectful and disrespectful behaviour. Explain to them that when they are in school they need to respect their teachers by listening carefully and following instructions. Talk about peoples’ feelings and stress to them that disrespectful or rude behaviour can hurt someone or cause distress. If necessary, you should explain what the word respect actually means. Essentially, you need to teach your children the importance of treating others the way they wish to be treated. This means paying attention to people when they’re talking, valuing their ideas and opinions, being honest to them and never lying or stealing from them. Of course, there’s a lot more to it than that and many socialisation skills will come naturally to your child as they grow up.