Comments on: Did You Teach Her That?

By: Vince

Vince — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 02:27:17 +0000

Ha, elevators and kids. We have a 6 month old and take him out in his stroller (through the elevator) for a walk almost everyday. I often wonder what a child like that thinks an elevator really is! I mean, it’s this tiny room like a closet that we go into and just sort of stand there for a few minutes, then the door opens and we are someplace else.

I think when he’s older I’ll tell him it’s a teleportation device. ;) Kidding, sort of.

By: Did You Teach Her That? « Life Reflections

Did You Teach Her That? « Life Reflections — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:16:20 +0000

[...] post on role modeling in Zen Family [...]

By: Zengirl

Zengirl — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:03:24 +0000

Learning from 2 kids under 5, I know they are like sponge, they absorb everything around, not only from us the parents, but also other people and kids, TV, and other things they see and watch, good and bad both. It is amazing what our 4 years knows, sometimes he surprises us with ability to see and learn.

Magical years. Enjoy them.

By: Jill

Jill — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:02:30 +0000

We have always encouraged our kids to be independent to the point that our 7 & 9 year olds know basic cooking skills, how to do laundry, how to clean a toilet and how to take care of those younger than them.

I love that they have always felt secure enough in their family to take chances and know that they had a safe place to land if they fell :)

By: renee @ FIMBY

renee @ FIMBY — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 12:22:13 +0000

Teaching our children through our example is more effective than any words we communicate. The words will confirm or be in contradiction to what they already see to be true from our example. I find this scary! At 10,8 & 7 my children have picked up on certain attitudes that I know come from me – I have no one else to blame. I homeschool them even, there’s no school or peers to point the finger at.

Changing myself is a huge part of parenting.

By: kosmo @ The Casual Observer

kosmo @ The Casual Observer — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:12:10 +0000

@ Jayhawkgirl – maybe they should add a “go faster” button for the same reason :)

By: Melissa Gorzelanczyk

Melissa Gorzelanczyk — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 20:54:39 +0000

Great post! As the kids get older and make mistakes, I find it helpful to ask them, “What have you learned?” rather than trying to tell them “how it is” or what they did wrong.

By: Dustin | Engaged Marriage

Dustin | Engaged Marriage — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 17:15:22 +0000

I agree with your idea of blending the need to teach by instruction and teaching my example. As the Dad to two young ones (4 year old boy and 2 year old girl), I have to say that much of their actions are ingrained in their natural ways and personalities. At least that’s the best explanation we have for our two children who were raised in a very similar way, but who act completely differently!

By: Marie Rhoades

Marie Rhoades — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 16:34:25 +0000

Yes, this is very true. I think you are right to model the behavior as you want her to learn it, and trust that she will make the right choices as she grows older. Just last night I took my 12 and 14 year old daughters with me to aquacise class, and afterwards they mentioned how they didn’t like the backbiting and gossiping that was going on between the older ladies! We have worked very hard to teach our children to look for the good in others and not to talk about them behind their backs. I hadn’t even thought about it when I attended the class alone, but the behavior those ladies were modeling was definitely not attractive, and my children were wise enough to recognize it!

By: Wojciech Kulicki

Wojciech Kulicki — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 16:12:49 +0000

What an amazing lesson as we get ready for our little one. I’ve been watching a lot of parents “tell” their kids what to do, how to act, and then excuse their own actions with “well…I’m a grownup.”

I completely agree that kids learn more by modeling, even sub-consciously than anything we could possibly communicate to them verbally.