Ways To Encourage Honesty In Your Child

 

Honesty is an essential trait that has to be developed in a child from a very young age, so it becomes second nature when they grow older.

 Children often do what they see their parents or elders do. Hence, to make sure they practice honesty, we should be honest ourselves and set an example for them to follow. For example, it could be as simple as accepting your mistake or talking about what made you upset.

Rewarding their honest behavior also helps, like when they tell you something that would get them into trouble. So reward them and let them know how happy and pleased you are with their honesty. 

To set an example for them to follow may also include living up to the promises you made to them, even if the result wasn't something you might have expected.

Instead of shutting them out when they are saying something, please make an effort to believe them.

Honesty also equals responsibility. Hence, it would help if you always let them know the consequences of how they act, so they think before reacting or speaking in future.

Being consistent when you say something also helps in instilling honesty in children. For example, you should stick by that rule when you make a rule. So they know they can't break the rules according to their convenience.

Create an environment where the child shouldn't feel pressured to say the truth, rather should be comfortable in sharing and being honest about things. 

CBSE affiliated schools also help in teaching honest behavior in a child. Teachers and instructors often play a huge role in influencing a child.

Creating a culture in the schools of Bangalore, of ethical and honest behavior begins with the teachers designing courses to improve students' knowledge, abilities and skills. CBSE affiliated schools have the systems and these good school curricula developed to promote this conduct.

 

Some of the ways to help build your child towards honesty are which are also recommended by the top schools of Bangalore

 

●     Model honesty

If you don't want your kids to lie to you, don't lie to them, and don't let them hear you telling lies. "It's one thing to say to kids that honesty is important, but then if they see you lying, it sends a mixed message," says Victoria Talwar, associate professor in the Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology at McGill University in Montreal and a leading researcher on kids and lying.

 

●     Don't set them up

"Looks like you split some juice. Let's clean it up together," keeps things focused on the issue at hand. And if you're not sure who broke the vase or which sibling is lying about it, Stavinoha says, go straight to the consequence. "Don't engage with the question of did they break it or which child broke it. Instead, focus on what you want to be accomplished. 'We have a mess here. I'm asking you both to clean it up.' You're showing them that there's no positive consequence for denying responsibility." 

●     Tell positive stories

 "We talk about lying being bad, but we don't highlight the alternative behavior. Kids need examples for how to behave in situations where lying might be easier, stories that show how, to be honest, that looks like? Those are important messages," says Talwar. For older kids, talking about the characters' honesty in the books they're reading can provoke inspiring and instructive discussion. 

●     Say truth-telling makes you happy

The thumb rule is to appreciate truth and let them know you understand it. 

●     Teach tact

Kids learn early — from their parents — how to lie for politeness or to avoid hurting someone's feelings. For example, "Thanks, this book looks great," instead of "I already have this book!" or "I can't play because I'm busy," instead of "I don't like playing with you!" 

●     Don't reward the lie.

When your child lies, there's a reason — they're seeking something. And if they get it, that can reinforce lying as an effective strategy. 

●     Catch them being honest

When your child tells you the truth about something they've done, take a moment to show that you appreciate their honesty by saying, "I'm thrilled you told me the truth." 

●     Discipline patiently

 "One thing parents can do is not have a great big emotional reaction. The more explosive the parent gets, the more frightened the child gets, and the more likely they are to lie. So simply remaining calm and sticking to the facts you've observed is one way to get kids to tell the truth," says Stavinoha.

 

●     Have a conversation, not a lecture

The more open and conversational the relationship between parent and teen, the more effective, says Dr John Duffy, clinical psychologist and author of the best-selling The Available Parent: Radical Optimism for Raising Teens and Tweens.

 

●     Set clear rules

Being strict is okay. However, it's essential that parents pair this with being emotionally warm, open, and accepting, so teens don't think they will be harshly and unjustly punished.

 

●     Give them space

Give time, and stay calm. 

Courses should be mapped to help the child learn and develop. Bangalore's top schools, which are good, have their activities designed to motivate the students and encourage learning, thus creating an environment where they don't have to resort to cheating to get the marks or live up to certain expectations from their teachers or parents. The fee structure of the CBSE schools that have honesty in the curriculum, through activities.

Earlier, the objective was education, but today the new schools aim to also concentrate on the way education is imparted, to see if it is a learning-based activity or an activity to score some marks. 

As is always the case, you are the role model. You do not want your child to hear you telling a lie. Live by the truth. If your children see you telling even "harmless" white lies, they will feel like it's ok to lie. When we get in the habit of telling small lies, it leads to a tradition of telling big ones. Put thought and initiative into telling and seeking the truth all the time. 

Until we're trying, we are doing.

So keep trying with honesty and teaching honesty with the help of good schools. 

A clear significance should be given to honest children rather than concentrating on punishment for unacceptable behavior.

 No words we say to children will ever be as influential as our own behaviour.