Ethical behavior and social manners are essential life skills that will enhance the social, personal, and emotional development of your preschooler. Adopting good habits helps children get along with others and fit into society healthily and productively. One's behavior can determine their future success too! Therefore, as a parent, it's crucial to start modeling good habits in your kids at a young age. In Montessori Preschool Winnetka, your child will learn valuable social skills to help shape their behavior. However, beyond this, you need to enforce the same at home as well. With this in mind, here are five tips to help you promote positive behavior in your children!
1. Encourage Conversation With Your Child
The best thing you can do to model good behavior in your children is to encourage conversation. Have one-on-one talks. Kids are bound to mess up at some point, and scolding them may prove counterproductive. When they do something wrong, sit down with them and talk. Let them know that what they did is wrong. Use positive conversation, for example:Say, "Please put that vase down" instead of, "Don't touch that vase."
When having a conversation, maintain eye contact, be attentive, and use gentle touch to show affection. For every no, give choices. For example, if you tell your little one not to ride on the street, let them know where they can ride their scooter, for instance, on the sidewalk. Positive conversations will help your child understand which behaviors to discard and which ones to adopt.
2. Come Up With Practical Routines
The lack of routine breeds chaos and leaves a lot of free time for your kids to engage in unpleasant behavior. They are also more likely to disobey. For example, if you allow your child to go to bed at 9 p.m today, it will be hard to put them in bed at 7 p.m tomorrow. To avoid such instances, have a consistent routine that includes the following:- Waking and bedtime hours
- Mealtimes and daytime naps
- Bath time
- Playtime and reading time
- Entertainment
- Active and quiet times
Children who follow a set routine every day are more grounded than those who don't. If there are any changes to the routine, let your child know. Again, open conversation fosters good behavior and makes your child feel included in the decision-making process.
3. Allow Independent Problem Solving
You remember that time you found your kids arguing and you played referee? Well, it's time to retire the whistle! Solving all problems for your kids, especially resolving conflicts for them, can foster lousy behavior. If you rule the dispute and determine who's at fault, you can quickly fuel sibling rivalry between the children. The same applies to their friends and classmates. If your kids are arguing or trying to solve a problem, sit back and let them do it themselves. For example, they can work through an argument and determine the guilty party without your interference. The only thing you can do is ask questions that will help them work through the problem. Doing this will help them become better problem solvers in the future and foster good relations with others.4. Set a Good Example
Adults should lead by example. One of the best ways to promote good behavior in kids is through observation learning. According to studies, over-imitation, a trait where children copy what adults do, is a universal human trait regardless of culture. If you tell your kids not to curse, yet you're always using curse words, they will imitate you. This applies to other negative behaviors, such as speaking with your mouth full of food, yelling, violence, and much more. Set a good example by exhibiting the actions you want to instill in your children. Also, monitor what they watch on TV as it can influence their habits as well.5. Don't Be Afraid to Discipline
Well-disciplined preschoolers interact better with their schoolmates in Montessori Preschool Winnetka and give their teachers an easy time in the classroom. These are kids who listen to instructions and do not fuss or throw tantrums when they're asked not to do something. Therefore, if yours isn't responding to conversations, don't be afraid to discipline them. Positive discipline is less about punishment and more about the child becoming aware of what they did wrong and not repeating it in the future. Some healthy ways of disciplining kids include the following:- Outrightly teach children right and wrong
- Give consequences for indiscipline, for example, taking away something valuable like a toy or TV time
- Have clear and consistent rules and explain them in a way the kids can understand
- Call a time-out when you walk in on bad behavior
Finally, don't just focus on the bad. Reward or praise your children when they engage in good behavior. Kids who exhibit good behavior fit better in society and are more likely to foster healthy relationships in the future. Follow these simple and practical tips to instill good behavior in your preschoolers.
