Teaching Responsibility to your kids and . . . the positive results

I am the proud mother of 3 boys! They are ages 1, 9 and 13. With my oldest 2 children, I'm always looking for ways to teach them. There is so many things in life to learn and I want to be the one to teach them certain things. I enjoy teaching my kids!

Responsibility is a very important thing that I teach my children. It is isn't just about taking care of chores and homework. It is also about owning up when your wrong and helping others. Webster says that being responsible is being accountable for your actions and duties, being able to tell right from wrong and being dependable and reliable. 

From a young age, I teach my children how to be responsible. By teaching and by showing them with my day to day activities and actions. As much a chores are a big part of it, a larger part is being a upstanding and caring person. Allowing my children see me caring for my husband's needs and others needs before mine really helps them understand what it means to be humble and caring.

I teach my children the importance of keeping your word. When you say that you will or won't do something, you stick to it. If you fail to keep your commitment, own up to it. Don't try to excuse it away or blame someone or something else. We all make mistakes but it is extremely important that you try your hardest not to break your word.

Chores are important for many reasons. It not only teaches you life skills, it gives you strength to stand on your own. When my kids become adults and get married, I want them to get married for love. I don't want them to get married just so they can have someone to take care of them. That is a burden that is hard on both parties. So when my children start walking, I start teaching. I teach them to pick up their toys, throw away trash and how to put clothes in the hamper. By the time my children are 6 years old, I have taught them how to do most household chores and lots of life skills.

Now that my oldest son, Allen is 13, I have started giving him more opportunities for new responsibilities. I have found that with this new venture, my son has become even more responsible than I expected! 

Some of the things that I have done are: leaving his younger brothers in his care for short periods of time; asking him for his opinion with small purchases; having him help more with making meals and allowing him to be involved with setting and changing household rules.

Over the past 6 months or so, that I have been doing this, I have seen a large change in Allen. He is more willing to help when I ask. Also he volunteers to do things for me more often. I asked Allen for his opinion and here is what he had to say.

"It has helped me to feel like I have say on how things go in the house. It has helped me to be more confident in who I am and outgoing. Also it is teaching me to tackle obstacles with confidence."

So if you are having trouble with your child(ren) being responsible, try giving them more opportunity to show you just how responsible they can be. You just might be surprised at the results you get!

Later,

Erin