PARENTS BE A GOOD ROLE MODEL

PARENTS BE A GOOD ROLE MODEL

As a parent your children watch your every action and will imitate it.  Babies learn how to speak listening to you.  Your children learn social skills watching how you interact with others.  How you act, react, and spend time with your child shapes their developement.  Being the best role model you caa be is vitally important to the growth and development of your child.

QUALITIES OF A GOOD ROLE MODEL

1.  HIGH MORAL VALUES:  Always be honest with your child.  Demonstrate honesty when you are dealing with others.  Even a little 'lie" can teach your child it is ok to lie.  For example:  Don't ask your child to tell a person at the door you are not home."

Help your child develop good ethical values.  For example:  Your child finds a wallet with money in it on the ground.  Help your child find the owner and return the wallet.

Always practice what you preach.  A child will be quick to pick up hypocrisy.

2.  PERSERVERANCE:  Show your child the importance of reaching their goals.  Don't give up easily, allow your child to see how you can overcome obsticles to obtain goals.  

3.  RESPECT FOR OTHERS:  Always treat your child with respect and teach them to respect others.  They will closely observe how you interact with them and others and imitate your behavior.

4.  BE POSITIVE:  Your child will watch how you handle disappointments and copy your actions.  Show your child how to handle setbacks and disappointments.  Help them to see the bright side of a situation and how you work through a problem to create a solution.

TIPS FOR BEING A GOOD ROLE MODEL FOR YOUR CHILD

1.  Encourage your child to share their concerns.

2.  Always listen to your child.

3.  Admit to your child when you make a mistake.

4.  Have a clear expectaton of behaviors you expect from your child.

5.  Discuss cultural differences and model how to handle them.

6.  Model forgiveness.

7.  Respect yourself.  Your self-worth will be reflected in how confident your child becomes.

8.  Display good manners in front of your child.

9.  Model healthy food choices and exercise habits.

10. Find humor in life and laugh with your child.

MODEL NON-AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR

Keep this in mind:  teaching by example is often easier and more efffective than forcing children to obey rules by scaring, threatening, or tempting them with rewards.  For example:  Think about the mother who screams at her children to "Stop yelling!"  She might really want them to stop, but is she teaching them how to effectivily communicate or just modeling the same bad behavior? (Scan)

Modeling non-agressive behavior is very important in training your child.  Some children may lose their temper quickly and have temper tantrums.  They may throw things and yell and scream at you or others when they are frustrated when things don't go their way.

If your child is exhibiting this behavior, think about how you handle situations. Do you lose your temper easily?  Do you yell or raise your voice when angry?  Your child may be copying your behavior.

Take a serious look at what behaviors you are teaching your child.  When you get angry try to take a deep breath and think about the issue and how you would want your child to handle it and model the appropriate behavior.  You may even want to talk to your child and discuss how both of you can handle situations better.  It is ok to let your child know that you have made a mistake and want to try to be better.  

If your child persists in temper tantrums, etc, try to teach your child techniques to hande their feelings and emotions.  For example:  Taking deep breathes, walking away, using words to express how they are feeling.

Above all model showing respect to others and to your child.  Talk to your child, listen, and be available to help your child develop good social and emotional skills.  Remember that your child is always watching and listening to how you handle situations.  They are eager to imitate you and want your approval.  

Resources

Scan of North Virgina Parents as Role Models   http://www.scanva.org/support-for-parents/parent-resource-center-2/paren...

Silver, Freddie; Qualities of good Role Model  12/11/2018