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Parents' Guide to Teaching Values to Kids

Parents' Guide to Teaching Values to Kids

Health and Natural Living. There are numerous things in today’s society that can be very damaging to a child’s moral values. That is why it is important as a parent to take every opportunity that presents itself to teach your children about the importance of having strong moral values. Having a strong moral base can make a huge impact on the ability of your child to make correct decisions in the future. Without good moral values they will likely make many bad decisions that will be bad for their future and not allow them to live to their full potential.

It is important that you begin working on your child’s moral values at a very early age. The earlier they learnt the easier it will be for them to stick to these values. Some people may have missed out on their lessons from their parents so they do not know how to teach values to their children while others were taught and are still unsure of how to pass these values to their child. If you are one of these people, do not worry, this post is full of information that will surely be helpful for you while trying to instill positive morals and values into your child. You may feel discouraged and may feel as if you will not be able to do your job as a parent and teach your child positive morals and values. Do not feel this way! It is possible and you can do it!

Morality Basics


As stated before, it is vital that you instill a positive set of morals and values into your child if you want them to be successful and happy in the future. There are many things in life that will be much more difficult to accomplish without proper values, if they can be done at all. Positive relationships will be much easier to build with proper moral values because your child will be more inclined to act in certain ways that are positive. Success will also be achieved much easier for a person with strong values compared to one who doesn’t. This is because the child with values will likely have a much better set of tools to use when making important decisions.

As you can see, moral values are very important for the development of your child. That is why it should be very high on your list of priorities and you should begin teaching them these values immediately. Before you can begin teaching your child about morals and their importance, you must first understand the basics.

The following chapter will touch base on the basics on morals and their importance for your child and the positive outcomes that teaching these values to your child will surely bring in the future.

The Basics
Morals and values can be taught in many different ways. In most cases, what works for one parent and child will most likely not produce the same results for a different parent and child. You have to explore and try different approaches.

If something does not work it is time to try something else. There will be a lot of trial and error when it comes to raising your child. You must keep in mind that nobody is perfect and this includes parents. It may be difficult to continue looking for answers to help you get through to your child, but it is very important.

Your child depends on you for guidance in life. There are things you must do in order to make sure that they are able to live up to their full potential in the future. There are many benefits to instilling a positive set of morals and values into your child.

The following are some examples of the positive benefits that your child can receive from having good morals and values:

  • Self-Respect:
If your child is brought up with a positive set of morals and values they will surely grow up to have healthy levels of self-respect and self-worth. This is because a child who has positive morals will make much more positive decisions than a child who does not. All of these positive decisions add up and the child will know that they make good decisions and that they are a good person. Self-respect contributes a great deal to the success of a child.

  • Experience in School:
Your child will most definitely have a better experience while attending school if they have good morals. They will be more responsible for their actions and not try to blame others for the things they do wrong. Their teachers will trust them more and will be more willing to work with them. You will notice that a lot of kids with good morals actually like going to school because they understand the importance of it.

  • Relationships:
When you child reaches the age that it is time for them to start forming relationships, it will be much easier for them to function if they have a good set of morals. People will be much more inclined to be around a person that has a good set or morals and values than a person who does not. This is because people find it difficult to trust a person with poor values and morals and trust is needed in any relationship, whether personal or professional.

Fitting in with the other employees will be very difficult and the only people they will find who accept them will likely be other people with poor morals. Finding more people with poor morals will just lower their morals even more and reinforce their way of thinking. On the other hand, if you instill positive morals and values into your child they will attract others into their life who have the same set of beliefs. They will find much healthier relationships and will have many doors of opportunity open up for them. Good brings good and bad brings bad so it is important to help your child be the best person they can be.

  • Accountability:
Children who have good morals are usually much more accountable than those who do not. That is why those who were brought up with good morals end up having much better relationships and opportunities in life. They do not pass blame, instead they accept when they have done something wrong and try to do something to change it. This will also lead to much more trust between a parent and a child which is always healthy for a family relationship. This will make it easier for your child to talk to you, no matter what is on their mind, even if it means that they have to confess to something they have done.

Be the Best Example


Your child’s mind can be thought of as a sponge. Everything around it gets absorbed. That is why it important to make sure that your child has positive influences in their life. There should be one main role model however and that is your job as a parent. It is important to understand that your child develops a lot of their behaviors from what they see you do. It’s as the saying goes, “monkey see monkey do”.

You need to make sure that you are constantly setting a positive example for your child. Your child thinks that you are a super hero and that you know the right way to do everything, which is why you must act like a super hero and always be positive.

The following chapter will shed some light on the importance of being a good example as a parent and ways in which you can do so.

Be a Super Hero
As mentioned above, it is important that you act like a super hero around your child. I do not mean that you need to go out at night in a mask and cape and go out and fight armed criminals. I mean that you need to always do the right thing in every situation, no matter how difficult it may be or what rewards a negative decision may offer you. By doing this you will show your child that it is important to always do the right thing.

It is important that you lead by example. It is much more likely that your child will pick up on the lessons being provided when they are by example and not just from things that you say. This is especially true when parents try to tell their children not to do something because it is bad. You must understand that it is difficult for a child to wrap their mind around this concept.

For example, many parents tell their children not to smoke cigarettes because they are unhealthy and can kill you, while the entire time they have a lit cigarette hanging out of their mouth, This message will surely not be retained as the child will think nothing of it after watching their parents do exactly what they were telling them not to. The same goes for teaching your child morals; you must practice what you preach!

You need to determine what morals you need to teach your child and find ways that you can demonstrate these morals by example. For example, if you want your child to learn to be kind, you may help an elder neighbor carry in their groceries or help them trim their lawn at no charge. Another way you can show this moral value is to give to a charity or provide a meal to someone in need. If you want to teach your child about being accountable it is important that you take responsibility for everything that is your fault, no matter how small you may think the issue is or how bad the outcome may be.

This will teach your child to not fear the consequences of being honest and to be more accountable for their decisions in life. If you want your child to learn responsibility you may want to try taking them to work with you for a day so they can see all the responsibilities that you have on daily basis. You may also want to have a talk with them about the responsibilities in life of paying the bills and making sure that there is always food on the table. This will help them understand that life is not one big game and will prepare them for the day that they must become responsible for their own life.

Basically, what you need to do is determine which moral values your child may be lacking or which morals you would like to change about your child and create a game plan. Your efforts may not work and first and may take some time to show progress but you will surely be successful in your efforts if you try hard enough. One of the most important things you need to do is analyze your own morals and values and make sure you are exhibiting positive lessons as a parent.

Begin Teaching Young


It is very important that you do not wait until the later stages of a child’s life to begin teaching them positive morals and values and how important they are to life. This is something that must be done as soon as possible. You may think that your child is too young to understand lessons about morals and values, this is not true. Children understand much more than many people think they do and begin retaining information from a very early age.

Begin teaching your child the importance of morals and values at a very early age. Your efforts will be much more beneficial if you do so.

The following chapter will go over the importance of beginning to teach your child about morals young and some ways in which to do so.

The Sooner the Better
Many parents make the mistake of waiting until a child’s later stages in the development process before they take action on the moral standards of their child. This is a big mistake and I will tell you why.
By the time a child is in the later stages of their development they already have a mind of their own. It is much harder to shape a child’s mentality when they are older.

The more they grow the more free will they acquire. They will eventually get to the point that they do not want to listen to what you have to say and would rather make their own decisions and learn their own lessons in life.

This can have very negative consequences because the child will not want to listen to someone who knows things from experience and will likely make foolish decisions. If you start at a very early age your child’s brain is like a sponge, as mentioned previously.

Scientific studies have shown that a large amount of your child’s development begins in the first five years of their life. Now do you see why it is so important to begin teaching your child at a young age.

There are many ways that you can teach your child positive morals and values at an early age. A few examples are provided below:

  • Give Them Responsibilities:
Provide your child with some responsibilities around the house. Sitting around watching TV or playing video games all day will have no positive influence on their morals.

It is important that your child has duties that they need to do every day, even if they are small responsibilities. A couple examples may be cleaning up their own messes or making their bed in the morning. You will likely be surprised by how much difference these little responsibilities make in your child’s morals.

  • Hold Them Accountable:
You must hold your child accountable for their actions. You also need to understand that kids will be kids. It is important to find a healthy balance between leniency and being strict. Some parents let their children get away with entirely too much without any sort of discipline.

They try to be the child’s friend and not their parent which leads to the child thinking that there are no real consequences for any of their actions in life. This will have very negative consequences for them and will likely lead to them not reaching their full potential in life.

On the other hand, if you are too strict you will not make a positive impact on your child either. They will likely begin to ignore you because they do not feel close to you and will hide things from you and lie to you because of fear of punishment.

  • Honesty is the Best Policy:
It is important that your child understands, even from a very early age, that lying is never ok under any circumstances. If your child lies to you there needs to be some sort of discipline. Be careful when selecting your method of discipline though because you do not want to be too stern on your child. Another thing that you may to avoid is entertaining made up stories. Imagination is one thing but if a child is making stories up to get out of something there is a problem that needs to be addressed.

  • Volunteer Work:
Volunteer work is a great way for a child to learn very important morals for life. Even at a very early age, some volunteer associations will allow children to help them with their volunteer work. An example that you may want to consider would be your child making sandwiches in a food drive for the needy. Another example might be to serve food in a food kitchen on a holiday. This will teach your child to appreciate what they have and to not be greedy with things in life. It will also teach your child to be kind and compassionate In life and provide them with the capability of loving other’s than their self.

Pay Attention to What Your Child Is Bombarded With Daily


In today’s society, there are many negative things all around that can negatively impact your child and their set of morals and values. Everywhere you look there is something negative or violent going on. The streets are filled with chaos and the media is filled with violence. Music is full of hate and video games are full of drug use. What can you do to protect your child from all the external factors that you do not want influencing your child? The answer is simple, you have to spend time with them and pay attention to what is going on in their life.

The following chapter will provide you with some examples of what you should avoid and what you should look out for with your child while trying to instill good morals and values into their life.

Get Involved
There are numerous things in life that can negatively influence your child. The most important thing you can do to help your child to avoid these negative influences is to get involved in their life.

You need to know what is going on with them and the types of situations and influences that exist in their life. Your child may make it seem sometimes like you are spying on them or not letting them live their own life. You have to ignore this because it is important that no matter what you are involved in your child’s life.

The following are some examples of things you need to be aware of and things you need to avoid if you want your child to develop a good set of morals and values:

  • Know Your Child’s Friends:
Children can easily be influenced by other children. In some cases, a child will actually listen to another child more than an adult. That is why it is extremely important for you as a parent to know who your children associate with.

If your child has negative influences as friends their moral standing may be at jeopardy. Even if your child does not agree with what a certain individual is doing they may eventually begin to participate anyways because they want to gain the acceptance of that person, this is only human nature. The more that your child engages in these activities the less bad they will feel about it. This will lead to changes in your child’s morals and values and things they used to think were not ok suddenly are. This could include drug use, lying, stealing, or other negative behaviors.

  • Watch Out For Certain Video Games:
Video games are becoming increasingly violent. On top of that they are also starting to promote drug and alcohol use and other types of behaviors more and more. The problem with a child playing games such as these is that a child can have difficulties in distinguishing what is ok in a video game and what is ok in real life.

This leads to children doing some very shocking things. There have been instances where children have been seriously hurt or have hurt or even killed other children. When they were asked why they did what they did, they would reply that it was ok in their video game and that they didn’t think that anyone would get hurt.

Situations such as these actually happen a lot more than you probably think. This is the main reason why there are ratings on video game covers. Parents need to stop buying video games that are meant for people ages 17+ for young children. There is a reason why those games have mature ratings.

They are not meant for minds that can be molded as easy as a child. Parents like to try to blame video games for their child’s actions but they should really be asking themselves why they bought it for their child in the first place.

  • Music:
Just like other forms of media, music can either be beneficial for your child’s morals or can be completely negative. More often than not it is negative. It is important for you to know what type of music your child listens to. In years prior to iPads and iPhones, your child would listen to their music on their stereo and you would be able to hear what they were listening to. In today’s age, kids are always walking around with earphones in and you have no idea what they are listening to.

Take a minute to ask your child who some of their favorite musicians are and ask them if you can listen to some of their music with them sometime. It is important that you ask if you can listen with them and not on your own because this will let your child know that you are interested and not just trying to pry inot their life.

  • Free Time:
You also need to know what your child is doing with their free time. If you are trying to boost your child’s moral standards it would be a good idea to consider placing your child in some extra-curricular activities. These activities will teach your child responsibility and how to be accountable for their actions. This is very important for the development of a healthy set of morals and values.

Keep the Lines of Communication Open


It’s important that your child feels as if they can talk to you about anything. This will promote them to be honest at all times and to be accountable for their actions. This is very important if you want your child to grow up to have a strong foundation provided by moral values. Keeping an open line of communication with your child will surely make many situations that will arise in their future much easier to cope with and handle.

It is important to keep in mind that this may not always be able to do because you will most likely hear things that you do not want to over time. You have to stay cool headed as well as calm and collected or this will never help your child’s morals.

The following chapter will go over the benefits of being open with your child as well as some challenges you should be expecting to face.

The Benefits of Being Open
There are many benefits that can be offered by being open with your child. It is important that you are not selective with what you are able to be open with your child about. Having discussions with your child about issues they are facing or things that they may be thinking of doing can provide great opportunities for you as a parent to instill morals into them. Children naturally look for guidance; it is how we as humans work. It is important that you offer that guidance in a positive way.

These discussions can offer many positive moral influences to your child. It will teach them to be accountable for their actions. It will teach them right from wrong. It will teach them about sticking to their goals. One of the most important things it will teach them is to have integrity and be honest no matter what the consequences are.

It is important for you to be aware of the fact that you have to do half of the work in this process. It is also important that you be aware of the fact that you will likely hear things that upset or disappoint you while you have an open relationship with your child.

You must keep your head together if you want this process to work. If you cannot appropriately react to a situation you are neither helping your child nor giving them a positive example of how to handle their issues in the future. No matter what you hear you have to approach it with a level head.

You have to remember and appreciate the fact that your child is coming to you for guidance. As much as something angers you, it is important that you do not speak to your child like you are mad at them. You must show that you understand and while you do not have to like the discussion you must respect them for coming to you.

It will help this process greatly if you show your child that they are building trust with you by being open with you. Give them a little bit more privileges or let them do a few things you couldn’t trust them to do before such as staying out late with friends or borrowing the family car.

Look For Opportunities to Point Out Good Values and Choices


If you want your child to truly understand the value or good morals and all the benefits that they will bring to their life, you must point out the good choices that your child makes in life. Some parents make the mistake of only pointing out the things that their child is not doing correctly. This is a bad habit and it is understandable that they may not know another way of parenting, but they need to learn another way quickly.

You need to make a big deal when your child makes correct decisions in life, especially when it comes to big decisions. This will reinforce their behaviors and make them want to hold on to the morals that you have tried to raise them with.

The following chapter will touch base on the importance of pointing out the correct decisions your child makes as well as the positive morals that their character exhibits.

Point Out the Positives

Pointing out or paying attention to nothing but the negative things a child does or the wrong decision that they make can be very damaging to their self-image. This can put a child at danger for losing their morals and values and developing new ones that are negative instead of positive. Children naturally seek their parents approval so continuously focusing on a child’s wrong doings can make the child feel as if they are not a good person or are not good enough for you. You do not want your child to feel this way as it will almost surely destroy their future.

You need to reinforce every positive decision your child makes with their life, no matter how small of a decision it is. Positively reinforcing a behavior is an almost guaranteed way to keep that behavior continuing. Whether it be that your child got straight A’s on their report card or decided to do their homework before playing video games, you need to make sure that you acknowledge it and make sure that they know that you know what they have done.

You may want to set up a reward system that is designed around building the moral character of your child. For their smaller achievements along their journey you may offer them a small reward. When your child achieves a larger goal they should be treated to a larger reward. Remember, their rewards do not always have to be material objects. As a matter of fact, you may want to steer clear of rewarding your child with material objects as much as possible. Using material objects can make a child develop a habit of expecting a reward every time they do something. Instead offer rewards such as later bed times, friends staying over, or allowing them to spend more time on their video game system that day.

The most difficult part in all of this is most likely the fact that you have to learn how to be balanced. Just as you cannot only focus on the negatives of a child, you cannot only focus on the positives either. Children are after all, just children.

They need guidance and will make wrong decisions from time to time. It is important that you hold your child accountable for their actions and not make excuses for them if you want them to have a good set of morals and values. When your child does something wrong you need to point it out. Not only will it be beneficial for the morals of your child it will also be appreciated by your child.

Children want to feel structure. Structure is how children know that you care for them. The fact that you do not let them do whatever they like shows them that you love them, even if they do not act like it at the time.
The most important fact to remember while trying to build your child’s moral standards is that you are the parent. You will have to have difficult conversations and do difficult things, but it is all for the benefit of your child.



It is understandable for you to look at the task of instilling a good set of values into your child as a very difficult journey. However, it really does not need to be. By being a good role model and being involved in your child’s life you will being doing a lot to ensure that your child grows up with a good set of values. One of the most important things you can do is simply show your child that you care and the importance of being a good person. You can do that, can’t you?

The information that you have read in this post should be very helpful for you when it comes to teaching your child about morals and values. Just apply what you have learned and you should begin to see improvements in their character in no time at all.
I thank you for your time and I hope you enjoyed this blog. Good luck!

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