Teaching Kids to See What Needs to be Done & Do It

National Center for Biblical Parenting - www.biblicalparenting.org

This parenting tip is taken from the book, "Say Goodbye to Whining, Complaining, and Bad Attitudes, In You and Your Kids," by Scott Turansky/Joanne Miller - Used by permission

One of the parts of our honor definition is that we do more than what's expected. That means seeing what needs to be done and doing it, and solving problems instead leaving them for others. One family had a sign in their kitchen that read:

If it's broken, fix it.
If it's empty, fill it up.
If it's open, shut it.
If it's out, put it away.
If it's messy, clean it up.
If you can't, then report it.
That's honor.

Take time to teach children that they don't have to be asked in order to do a job. Honor means that we are all contributing to family life. In fact, you may ask a child to go around the house and look for one job that needs to be done and do it, then report back to you.

These kinds of discussions and exercises will help children think outside of their little box and discover that they have a responsibility to the family. They can contribute to family life by just seeing something that needs to be done and doing it.

Of course, that's what makes a valuable employee so you can teach your children something more important than just how to get along better in your family. You may be preparing them to be outstanding employees as they get older.