(my little ones: ages 2, 4, and 6)
Life be not so short but that there is always time for courtesy.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
When I taught elementary school I expected the students under my care to be polite and respectful, not only to adults, but to their peers as well. We worked hard together at creating classes that were kind and polite, which in turn made them successful. I began teaching my own children the simple rules of etiquette at very early ages. My youngest is now two years old, but some of her first words were "please", "thank you", and "excuse me." Manners in our house are not only expected, but are also appreciated. And I think that makes a world of difference. I make sure to be just as polite to my children as I expect them to be to me. Teaching by example works well in our home.
Parents Magazine ran an article in their March 2011 edition titled, 25 Manners Every Kid Needs by Age 9 By David Lowry, Ph.D. It's an easy and managable list and I sat down and discussed it with my children last spring. I pulled it out again tonight to review this coming week. We're going to reflect on how we've been doing and make a few new goals for the coming year. And I think that I'll make a special note to try to follow #3 better myself.
I think we share a brain:). Last night (before you posted this) I told our family that we were going to kick off our "Kings Have Manners" dinner napkin challenge again but only this year we are going to introduce 'Two Manners a Month' to the challenge. I told them there are 25 (same list)!! Crazy!! I love it!! Please continue sharing.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to print these out! Thanks for the link.
ReplyDelete