Teach Children to be HONEST with the Help of Mrs. Good Choice !

Mrs. Good Choice is a former public school principal who has spent her life teaching children to make wise choices.  She now wants to help YOU

 

How many of us have heard the old saying Honesty is always the best policy?  My parents reminded me of this statement time and time again when I was a young child.  I can still hear my mom’s voice in my mind.

My wish for our younger generation is to always tell the truth.  When this happens, children turn in to honest adults that teach their children to do the same thing.  Our world becomes a better place.

The key question is how can we teach such a valuable character trait?  Research shows that children ages 3 -5 years often tell untruths.  They are still at an age of development.  It takes time for them to distinguish between real world and fantasy at this stage of development.

One reason young children may not be honest is because they may want to try to please their adult role model.  Another reason is that they may fear getting in to trouble.  Often they may be engaging in wishful thinking or they could be just plain confused.

It is our jobs as adults, to teach children the meaning of honesty before we can set expectations. Teach children that honesty is in how they act.  Stress the important of only stating facts about other people that they see with their own eyes or hear with their own ears.

Give them examples of what this means.  Make up games to play together about honesty.  Ask questions that they can answer yes or no (true or false).  Example:  Grandma lives in our house?  A dog has two legs?

Teach children that it is important to always admit to their own actions, even if they may get in to trouble.  As a principal, when children came to my office because of a discipline issue, I always told them they needed to be honest and tell me the truth.   I explained to them that their consequences would be less harsh if they were honest.

Children need to understand that honesty means explaining what really happened in particular situations.  We have to teach children the importance of doing the right thing the first time.

Read books to your children about honesty.  Benjamin’s Belligerent Bandit is the second book in my Mrs. Good Choice Series.  Benjamin blames someone for doing something without proof.  You can find it at www.amazon.com.

If you have questions I can help answer, please email me at dawn@mrsgoodchoice.com. You and your children may email me together.  Expect an answer from Mrs. Good Choice in a timely manner.

Blessings until next time,

Children’s Author

Dawn Young