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Parenting is not just about caring for the physical growth of a child- it is every bit about enhancing mental growth, too. Parents, arguably, play the largest role in the character formation of their child and have the most impact on how the child turns out to be in life as he/she grows up.
Some people argue that children learn morals on their own, or that preschool is too early for children to be learning about moral values and ideas. However, that is false; it is best to teach children values at a young age, so that it becomes a part of their personality as they grow.
Also Read: Important Life Lessons You Should Teach Your Kids
Let’s take a look at ten moral values that every parent must teach their children.
Ways to Inculcate Moral Values in Your Kids
1. Practice What You Preach
Children learn from the people around them, so in order to teach your kids good values, you must model them in your life, first. You may verbally explain numerous values, but your kid will only pick up the ones you showcase through your own behaviour.
2. Narrate Personal Experiences
Personal experiences are like stories, and all kids love hearing stories. Share stories from your own life, where abiding by a moral value had a positive experience in your life, and your child is bound to understand better.
3. Reward Good Behaviour
Come up with a system, where you reward your child for using these values in his/her life. Praise and rewards are positive reinforcement that works incredibly well in shaping children.
Also Read: Ways to Teach Children Good Manners
4. Communicate Effectively
Converse with your child, each day, about how these moral values work in day to day life. For example, you can discuss an article in the newspaper and ask your child what he/she would have done in the same situation.
5. Monitor Television and Internet Use
There’s no escape from the television and internet, but you can definitely monitor what your child watches. Make sure the show promotes good values and morals, and is appropriate for his/her age.
10 Moral Values for Children to Lead a Great Life
1. Respect
Many parents make the mistake of teaching their children only about respect for elders, but that is wrong. Everyone deserves respect, regardless of age or social standing. Respect is an essential moral value that your child must know about at a young age, as it plays an important role in his/her behaviour around strangers and elders. Toddlers that learn respect their peers and elders from a young age will benefit from this, in the future. Even when the times get tough in the future, your child will be more solicitous of others.
Also Read: Ways to Teach Your Child About Respect
2. Family
Family is an integral part of kids’ lives. It shapes and nurtures them into adults. Therefore, it is important to give your children a sense of family and help them understand why family is important. Do that, and it’s more likely your children will grow up respecting and loving their family through thick and thin.
3. Adjusting and Compromising
It is important that children know that not everything works according to them. Teach them from a young age that when it is absolutely necessary, they may have to try and adjust. Your child must be taught to adjust and compromise, only if their own life is not at stake here. While adjusting sounds great in principle, there is a thin line where it crosses over to compromise. If the child ends up on the losing end because of a compromise, it not only is detrimental, but also curbs identity.
4. Helping Mentality
Your child must be taught to help others from a young age, even if it may be a complete stranger. You have to teach your child why helping others is so important and how you always get it back when you help someone. To be a functional part of society, it is important that your child is empathetic to others’ needs.
5. Respecting Religion
Your child should be brought up, not just to respect his own religion, but also to understand that every person has the right to choose his/her religion. Teach your children, from a young age, that all humans are equal, regardless of their religion or the festivals they celebrate.
6. Justice
A moral compass and a sense of justice are two of the most important values that any child must have from a young age. Your children must always be encouraged to speak up when they perceive a wrongdoing, for their own benefit or for the benefit of the others.
7. Honesty
From a young age, honesty should be instilled as one of the most important values for kids. Honesty is always the best policy, and your child must be encouraged to tell the truth regardless of whatever mistakes he/she may have committed.
8. Never Hurt Anyone
Explain to your child that hurting someone is not just a physical problem- any hurt can have a psychological and emotional effect as well. Remember to teach your children how to apologise, and encourage them to apologise immediately if they ever hurt someone, either physically or verbally.
9. Theft
Theft is wrong, no matter what the justification behind it may be- this is one of the good values for children. Teach your child that theft is a wrong thing, not just legally, but also morally as well, as it means that he/she will be taking something that belongs to someone else.
10. Cultivate Love for Education
Education is the biggest weapon one can have, and the thing that has the most impact on where you end up in life. A love for education must be cultivated in the child, right from preschool, and you should also try to get your child to understand the importance of education in life.
Moral values must be instilled in children right from the beginning, and no age is too early to start. They play a huge role in building the personality of the child and have the biggest say in how your child shapes his/her life.
