4.7 – Teaching our children family rules – feedback
Obviously many of these suggestions about rules can be used with our children from early childhood through to adulthood. Rules are important and children and young people feel secure when they know what these rules are. Did your answers include any of these?
| Age | What others said |
|---|---|
| 18 Months | When you need to say no, be firm. Ignore them when their behaviour is unacceptable (only when it is safe to do so). Give lots of attention and praise when their behaviour is good. |
| Five Years | If they do something wrong, show them how to do it properly. Ask them to repeat what you have said to show they understand. If they continue to get it wrong, don’t get angry just start back at the beginning and remember to make it fun! |
| 11 Years | Hold family meetings, if rules aren’t working make some changes. Stick gold stars on a chart to get the behaviour you want to see. |
| 15 years | Spend time together doing something they like. Discuss peer pressure and talk about your values. |
| 17 Years | Help them to make their own rules to live their lives by. Discuss social and moral issues. |
As our children grow and develop we can help them build good self esteem to be confident and to behave in a respectful way. By praising our children and giving them clear guidelines in rules, boundaries and consequences we are giving them the opportunity to succeed. Don’t expect your children to get it right all the time. If we can model good behaviour to them, they are more likely to behave in the way we show them.
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