Childhood years are the best times to learn.
Somehow, a person’s comprehension is at its peak during childhood. Parents
should take advantage of these learning years to ingrain the values of life in
their children.
If you’re a parent, teach them positive habits so
that they will know and see the beauty that life has to offer. Make them
enthusiastic about life. Instill into their hearts and minds all the wonders
and magnificence of being alive by living life to its fullest in a positive
way.
There’s a startling difference between children
learning through self-discovery, and children learning through self-discovery
with proper guidance. The first things that children learn are usually the
things that stay with them and mold formative years until they reach adulthood.
Let us suppose you let your children learn
through self-discovery. To a certain extent, self-discovery is good since it
develops full independence and self-reliance. However, the learning process
might be slow. In a sense, it is like a trial and error experience for
children. They have to segregate the good from the bad, the right from the
wrong, what they like and what they don’t. It is most likely that what they
will like are the ones that come easy to them or the ones that they enjoy the
most. And the ones that they enjoy the most might not necessarily be the good
ones. Without proper guidance, what they like and enjoy the most might actually
be hurting them although they are not aware of it. Perhaps later, if they find
out that they picked the wrong choices, it may be too late.
With self-discovery through proper guidance, you will
be able to leave room for them to develop independence and self-reliance. At
the same time, show them what is right and what is wrong. Explain to them why.
If possible, cite instances or examples based on true-to-life events to make
them more convincing and realistic. The more realistic they are, the more easily
the children are convinced. Likewise, try teaching them in a friendly and
humorous atmosphere. Children are more attentive and eager to learn when all
(both teachers and students) are in an easy mood. You will know and feel their
eagerness to learn through the sparkle in their eyes and by the way they answer
your questions. You can be sure that what they learn from you is acceptable to
them and will stay with them. That is why, as a parent, you must show
enthusiasm in life to your children.
There’s a third method of making children learn.
That is through proper guidance leaving negligible room for self-discovery. But
there are drawbacks. You take away from them the benefits of self-reliance and
independence. The guidance you devote to them may be good and well intended,
but they must not rely on you on almost everything they do. They become
decision-dependent on you. There are instances wherein this type of guidance
might be worse than giving no guidance at all.
There are parents who underwent hardships during
their childhood, strived, and became successful financially. Although they are
financially in the position to guide and assist their children to a better
life, they prefer that their children undergo the same difficult experience
they underwent during their younger years. Their reason: so that their children
will value and experience the same things they went through. This may be
applicable to stubborn and rebellious youngsters, but not to disciplined ones.
Why must their sons and daughters repeat the same difficulties? There’s no
reason to. This is like punishing the innocent. Instead of repeating the
experience, they should learn from it. Life is too short to repeat unsavory
experiences.
One of the best ways to broaden your children’s
knowledge about life is by traveling. The world - its varied people, places,
and cultures - has a lot of information to offer. It is perhaps as important as
the conventional classroom. If you are financially able, traveling is one of
the best educational experiences you can give your children. Look for exhibits
or world fairs, and take your children there. Books are the next best things.
It’s traveling by reading.
Fill your children with thoughts of
self-importance, confidence, and positive attitude so that there will be no
room for negative thinking. More importantly, fill their world with laughter,
love, and understanding. You‘ll never go wrong.