Like any relationship, the bond between a parent and child can be made stronger with some habits. That can be easily incorporated into your everyday routines.
- Dine Together
Having dinner together with your kids can make an amazing result in their character formation. Research has shown a link between regular meals with kids and increased positive developmental benefits such as better health and eating habits; strong mental, emotional, and social skills; improved behavior; and better academic performance.
Even if you can’t get time to have dinner together every night, you can go at your convenience. If your weeknights are packed with late hours at the office or extracurricular activities, you have many options like having breakfast together or snacks together or if you are away from your family, make an online dinner together. The main aim is to make family meals fun, talk about the day, and stay connected with your kids.
2. Talk about your Day
Like dinnertime, you get an opportunity to speak at your bedtime to catch up with your kids about the day. You can ask them questions that will prompt them to answer in detail, like “What was the best part of your day today?” or “What was the funniest thing that happened today?”, “What about your friends?”
You too should talk about your day, and share details like what you were most proud of achieving that day or what problem you may have and how you plan to solve it. By sharing something about yourself, you are showing your child that you value them as a person and feel close enough to confide in them. You also strengthen your bond and show them that they are important to you.
3. Play Together
Having fun together is the best way to enter your kid’s heart. Go outside and ride bikes together or kick around a soccer ball. Or an inside-home game can be conducted. And encourage them to work on great social skills and good manners, like learning how to be a gracious winner or loser, while you have fun.
There may be no need for perfection in your activities, it is just a matter of fact that you are doing something fun together. You can cook together, bake some treats together, or even watch and then “review” a great kids’ movie. Do something that you both enjoy and connect while you’re doing it, just as you would with your spouse or a good friend.
4. Be Respectful and Expect the Same
Kids can sometimes be exasperating, and can certainly make mistakes. But parents should keep in mind that treating kids with respect is as important as disciplining kids. Even if your child has done something that requires you to discipline them, you can speak to them in a calm and loving manner.
Going for corporal punishment has been shown to not only be less effective. It can harm your relationship with your child.
Good manners are not the things to be done outside the home, it must be practiced and followed at your home. Hence remind kids to say “please” and “thank you” and make sure you do the same!
Treating each other with respect and courtesy will not only bring you closer together but will make your home a more pleasant place to live.
5. Let them Help
Working together is one way to help your son grow into a good man. Kids naturally love to be helpful, and when you give them chores and responsibilities, you boost their self-confidence and make them feel valued.
Tell them how great a job they’re doing, and how much you value their help. Not only will it bring you closer together, but it’ll help your kids grow into confident and kind people who love helping others.