How Can Parents Encourage Responsible Behavior?
Especially when they are young, children learn best about responsibility in concrete situations. What they do and What they Witness have lasting effects. Most of the activities described in this article are for you and your child. We are always teaching our children something by our actions. They learn from seeing. They learn from hearing. They learn from us, from each other; from other adults, and by themselves. All of us acquire habits by doing things over and over again, whether in learning to play a musical instrument, to picking up after ourselves, playing games and sports, or sharing with others. The best way to encourage our children to become respon sible is to act as responsibly as we can in their presence. We can show them by our words and by our actions that we respect others. We can show them our compassion and concern when others are suffering. They need to see our own self-control, courage, and honesty. They need to learn that we treat ourselves, as well as others, with r
