You teach your child how to tie her shoes, spell his name, and recite the alphabet. Equally, or perhaps more important, you want to impart upon your child how important it is to help others. Fortunately, children have an innate desire to lend a hand. Make the most of this desire while your child is still young and you will raise a loving, giving adult.
Whether or not you have religious or moral beliefs about helping others, there are many reasons to instill this principle in your child. Helping others makes a person realize how blessed he or she is, and brings out their best qualities. Helping other people changes lives. Even if it is something small, that act will have a ripple effect. By teaching your child to be charitable, you are helping the world become just a little bit better. After all, that is what you really wish for your child – a kinder, safer place to live.
There are many ways to teach your child about helping others. If you practice tithing or planned financial giving, you can start teaching this to your child while he or she is still in preschool. Purchase or make a piggy bank that has three sections: one for saving; one for spending; and one for giving. Every time your child receives money, divide it between the sections. Teach your child about giving possessions by making it a family rule that every time you receive a new item, you donate a similar, older one.
Probably the easiest and most significant way to teach your child to help others is by giving his or her time. Remember, children learn what they live. Consider ways that you can volunteer together as a family. It can be something big, such as pitching in to clean up after a natural disaster or becoming a foster family, or something smaller but no less meaningful, such as shoveling snow for an elderly neighbor.
Look for ways every day to encourage your child to help others. If your kindergartener has a classmate who has not quite mastered shoe tying, encourage your child to help him. Talk to your preteen about asking for charitable donations instead of birthday gifts from her friends. Prompt your teen to volunteer for causes that have meaning for her. By being supportive and recognizing all the ways your child helps others, you will inspire further like behavior.
You are your child’s chief example. Your model will be significantly more effective than mere words. If you pay close attention, there are ways you can help others each day. Let the person in the grocery store line with just a few items go ahead of you and your cart full. Stop for the other driver trying to turn onto the busy street. Help your spouse work on the car or clean the kitchen. The benefit? You just might find yourself feeling more positive and generally happier by making the world a little bit brighter.
