Manners aren't naturally inherited, they are learned. For kids, it's only normal to make mistakes while interacting with others, but it's also important to use those times as teachable moments for them. Raising caring kids who grow up to be well-mannered can be a challenging task, but you can turn this into a fun and memorable time both for you and the kids. The key point? Use playtime for teaching them manners!
Here are some play ideas you can do!
Have the adults and kids reverse roles during times when everyone is gathered around (for example, during dinner time). Ask each adult to do one or two things that are considered bad manners and give the kids a chance to call them out and state what better action they should have done. Just make sure that no one gets hurt or no property gets damaged while playing this game!
Charades are a classic and effective way to incorporate lessons about good manners for kids. For this version, teams need to act out and guess actions considered as "good manners" and "bad manners". As a twist, the group guessing the action must first decide whether the action is "good" or "bad" before they can proceed to guess what the actual action is.
Use a recycled jar which you can then label as The Manner Jar. Whenever your child conducts good behavior, write that gesture on a piece of paper and put it inside the jar. Each month, count the total number of papers collected and give rewards based on that total number. The more good manners done, the higher the reward, of course!
Turn a little corner in your house into a "compliments corner" by sticking a DIY chart on the wall. Each time your child receives a compliment from family or friends, teach them to say "thank you". After that, they will need to stick a star on the DIY chart. This also works when they are the ones giving compliments to others. You can also use other sticker shapes and colors in order to differentiate between giving and receiving compliments. This can also allow them to monitor how much they receive compliments and how much they give out.
What other activities are you planning to do with your kids in order to teach them good manners and right conduct?
