# How to teach good habits?



## gioele

Hello there!

I’m a young parent and was wondering if anyone had any tips and tricks on how to teach young children to be more organized, to be responsible and have good habits (brush teeth, time to go to bed, take care of a pet, etc.)?

Also, would you recommend the use of an electronic device to achieve this? For example, by managing points or recompensing the children by playing games on an iPad.

Thank you for your input!


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## katelove

You don’t mention the age of the children but I think, for primary school age, it’s very much a matter of modeling, reminding and doing things together. Consistency is also important. And I have a jobs first, then play philosophy. 

I do not have the expectation that my young children will consistently remember to do those things without my input. And I am not a fan of reminder charts (although maybe for older children). I prefer those routines to be part of our engagement and interaction. I also don’t use rewards although I will remind them of potential positive outcomes ie “Remember, once the jobs are all done we are going to the park.”

Pets, as living creatures, I think, need to be the responsibility of adults with input from the children in an age appropriate way. I don’t think it is fair on the or the child to expect them to have full or even most of the responsibility. The pet needs to be consistently well cared for. And young children don’t have the capacity to understand what that involves so extracting promises from them about “doing all the work” is meaningless and futile IMO. The don’t know what they’re agreeing to and aren’t capable of following through when they find out. 

My policy is to have no pet which I am not willing to care for myself. With that pressure removed you can then introduce your children to the pleasures and responsibilities of pet ownership without the frustration on both sides. We have chickens, guinea pigs and a cat and both my girls participate in their care. However, we have said no to various other pets until they are older and can take a more active role. 


ETA - I also wouldn’t use a device as I prefer to limit device/child interaction. 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Maiskin

Well, teaching habits is a really hard thing to do...


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## Mrs Mommy

Well, from my perspective, the best way to teach your child to learn good habits is by teaching them from their early age. Teaching them good habits from an early age will bring you a relief when they grow up.
Here are a few steps to steps to teach children good habits from an early age:

*1) Eating Healthy Foods*

Encourage your child to prefer healthy foods over junk foods. Feed them milk, butter, eggs, bread and homemade food instead of potato chips or other foods that build up fats in human body. Inform them about the benefits of consuming healthy foods.

*2) The Table Manners*

All parents must teach their children about the basic table manners. Whenever your child sits on the table for lunch or dinner in a public gathering as well as at home, teach them how to behave properly as they must know the rules and etiquette of sharing a table with other people.
*
3) Brushing Teeth Twice a Day*

Encourage your child to brush their teeth first thing in the morning when they wake up and the last thing in the night before they go to bed. Teach them about the importance of taking care of our teeth and the rest of our body by helping them learn through books and your own actions.

*4) Sleeping & Waking Up Early*

Parents must make their children adopt the habit of waking up early in the morning and going to bed early in night. Tell them about the health benefits this habit will bring them and keep a check on their sleeping schedule yourself.

*5) Cleaning Their Playground*

Promote cleanliness and a healthy environment. Always instruct your children to clean the place where they play with their toys. Whether it is a playground or home, your children must know that it is great to play in a clean and healthy environment.

Read more from here: thelearningapps.com/good-habits-every-parent-should-teach-their-children/


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## asnmdirteha

Be consistent, that is probably one of the biggest thing I tell parents. You have to continue to be consistent and expect them to have those good habits for it become natural instinct to them. However, you will sometimes run into kids who will push the boundaries and choose to do exactly the opposite but for most kids being consistent and knowing that they cannot push the boundaries really help.


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