Building strength in your child

Two habits build #emotional_intelligence in children. Remembering what matters is the first. Practicing Deliberate Kindness is the second.

PARENTING THOUGHTS AND ADVICE

What matters? This poster coach says it all:

Putting what matters into action matters as much as remembering it. Practicing kindness every where you can, when you can and as often as you can.

Teach practicing kindness as a life skill to your child. Doing so starts with two things: your example, and teaching good manners. Even before s/he has mastered kindness a child can learn to say “Thank you.”

Saying thank you is an act of deliberate kindess

A child can learn to say “Thank You” in American Sign Language, long before s/he can speak. Signing “Thank You” is similar to blowing a kiss, but the hand moves down over the heart.

The next lesson to teach is how to say “I m sorry.” This goes hand in hand with using time out as a disciplinary tool. The child is released from time out and expected to say “I’m sorry” and only then to get a hug.

This can also be taught as sign language. To sign “I’m sorry,” make your hand into a fist and rub it in a circular motion across your chest. It is like you are rubbing around your heart.

When the child can talk, the time has come to teach the art of a sincere verbal apology. Here is another poster coach detailing that

Emotional Fitness Training Skill Building Poster

All of the Poster Coaches used in this blog post can be downloaded free from the EFTI store.

STAY STRONG

Apologizing does not come easy to many. Men seem to have the most difficulty, however, actually apologizing to a child seems difficult for most adults. The more you can apologize and the more you teach your child to do the same, the more good feeling grow both in your heart and in all relationships.

So let me remind you that if my posts annoy, I apologize. I will not stop my efforts to help, but ask you to stop following me. I will not be hurt.

Finally, as always thank you for all you do to support my efforts to make a difference by liking, commenting or sharing this post. You are practicing kindness.

Katherine

This WordPress Daily Prompt: Against All Odds inspired this post: Tell us about a situation where you’d hoped against all hope, where the odds were completely stacked against you, yet you triumphed. Be sure to describe your situation in full detail. Tell us all about your triumph in all its glory.

I suffer from dysgraphia, it is a little known learning disability that makes getting the thoughts from your brain to a piece of paper in a recognizable form difficult. I confuse words, misspell common words, and violate grammar and punctuation rules constantly.

Given that my father was a news reporter, and wannabe writer, I wanted to be the same. I’ve done that and it has not been easy, nor have I had the great success I aspired to even though I did appear on Oprah. I do think, however, both my parent’s teaching and empathy for the less-abled, related to my disability, Both gifts have lead to a deep-seated desire to be kind.

Deliberate Kindness is one of my daily practices. Deliberate Kindness has given me more contentment than success as a writer would have. Not that I would mind more success and still seek it, but practicing as much kindness as I can is a daily goal and much easier than writing.