Trying to do the right thing
By Ms Michelle
@lenapoo (678)
United States
May 5, 2007 11:25pm CST
I have a friend that has a child that acts way older than her age. When she was younger about 4 she would laugh at her and think it was so funny and then now that she is 7 she is getting upset with her and telling her that she shouldn't talk like that and it is very disrespectful and she doesn't listen to her when she says things like that she said so it's there problem if they don't like the way i talk. What would you do in her situation? She had asked me what I thought and being me I told her the truth about what needed to be done. I said that back when she was 4 and it was so cute you really should have been telling her it wasn't then and she wouldn't be so rebellious now. She was like yeah i guess so, but it seems that it is much too late. Do you think that you should nip things like this in the bud early on? I think so because they will grow up knowing that isn't right to talk to people any kind of way. Do you teach your children to always be respectful no matter what? Would you make up excuses for why it is okay for them to talk so grown up at a young age? How would u handle being in a situation as such?
1 person likes this
2 responses
@faith_hope_love (377)
• Philippines
6 May 07
I believe a child should be taught of the right values even from the beginning. She may be a toddler but it is best to learn these values at a very young age because this will be their foundation as they grow up. Sure, it is cute when kids do stuffs or say things as a mature people do but they have to know that whatever they say or do, they should always give respect to other people especially people who are older than them. Now that the child already acquired the wrongdoing of disrespect, I do believe that it can still be corrected. Be patient in changing the child's views. It wont be a radical change but through patience and time, the kid will soon get it right. I advice putting the child in the right track now. Talk to the child and explain to her everything why it isnt good to speak to other people that way and set a good example to her. Kids are smart, they will follow what they see and what they are taught.
@happy2bmommy (305)
• United States
6 May 07
i agree with you all the way. my son is only 1 1/2 years old. there are things that he does that i know are bad, but i laugh, BUT i do this when i know he cant see me or hear me. i dont want him to think it is ok to misbehave. when he does something bad (but funny) i tell him in a stern voice, NO, then explain what is wrong. i know he understands me because once i scold him, he tries it once again, but much slower. this is how i know that he understands that it is wrong. he wathces me to see my reaction. i dont want him to grow up being disrespectful to any elders. i have also recently started to punish him for his bad behaviors. i dont put up with his tantrums anymore, he gets put into his room to calm down. sometimes it takes up to half an hour for him to calm down. i know he is still very young, but i prefer to deal with the problems now rather than later, when i think it will be harder to break his bad habits.
