10 things parents should teach their children

I don’t claim to be an expert on parenting, as I am quite a young parent myself, but I do know that there are certain things I want my children to know about life, and I believe that it is my duty to teach them these things. As a Catholic homeschooling mom, a former foreign missionary to families, and now a work-at-home writer/ advocate of family renewal, financial literacy and attachment and intentional parenting, I truly believe that these are 10 things parents should teach their children, mainly because most of these are things my own parents taught me.

10. It is all right to make mistakes. “Mistakes are your friends” (taken from My Masterpiece Movement’s Creativity Workshop for Mompreneurs). Learn from them, take the good, leave the bad behind, and move forward. (I must also remind myself about this every day, and to take it easy on my kids when they mess up. After all, nobody is perfect.)

9. Play fair and be nice to others. Everyone is fighting a battle every day, so be as nice and kind as you can be. Kindness is contagious! The ripples of your random acts of kindness will reach out far more than you can ever imagine, and, like the woman in this story, you never know who the person you are helping out will turn out to be!

Our kids love to play together, but inevitably end up squabbling at times, as is common among siblings. At times like these, we need to remind them to be nice to each other and show their love for each other.

8. Always say “please” and “thank you.” Good grades are important, but good manners matter most. At the end of the day, people will not remember you by your intellectual genius, but by how much lighter and brighter their day was because of your presence.

7. Play hard, study harder, pray hardest. Nothing is impossible when you have faith, no matter what your belief or religion may be. Even agnostics believe in something. Teach your children what you believe in, and how to make a stand early on in life.

As early as now, we are trying to teach our kids to love life and pray for unborn babies, or, as our son calls them 'the babies in their mommy’s tummies.' Here they are with their Lolo Mon at the March 25 Pro-Life Rally held at the Luneta Grandstand, which I blogged about here.

6. Study hard, not just to get a good education, but to acquire the skills you need to succeed in life. Don’t just focus on the academics, but enrich yourself through other activities. As Robert Kiyosaki once said, “Education is the foundation of success. Just as scholastic skills are vitally important, so are financial skills and communication skills.” Learn how to be financially literate at a young age, and you will reap success early on in life. (I learned this not from my parents, but by attending a series of free financial education lectures. Thank the Lord I did! Now I know better how to manage my finances, where to invest my money, etc.)

5. Choose your company well. Friendships can either make or break you. At the end of the day, your family will always be there for you. Friends come and go, but families are forever.

4. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. Avoid doing anything that may be deemed “evil.” Instead, strive to be good and do your best to be the best person that you can be, and everything else that you desire in your life will follow. You don’t need to resort to corruption, dishonesty, or immorality to succeed in life, find a good spouse or be rich.

3. Be faithful in all things. Financially, be steadfast in being generous and in saving up for rainy days. Now, even our four-year-old son knows that the money we earn should be allocated this way: First, give to God through the Church. Then, share some of it with the “poor kids.” Then, save some of it. Only after all these can we spend on what we need and what we want. Relationship-wise, stay loyal to your future spouse, always make time for your future kids, and be dependable in your business/work. Mother Teresa once said, “God has not called us to be successful. He has called us to be faithful.”

Spend some time every day with your kids. Here, the kids are enjoying their read aloud time with their Papa.

2. Work hard and don’t be afraid to do the “dirty work.” You will learn volumes by it! Chores are an essential part of character formation. Clean up your own mess, because there won’t always be someone to do it for you. Humility and selflessness are key to succeeding in life. So go for it! Wash those dishes, scrub that toilet, pick up that yucky gunk in the sink, throw out the garbage! You will be a better person for it.

We want to train our kids to help out and do chores even at a young age. Here, Tim and Rysse are shown: 1. Helping cook dinner; 2. Helping wash dishes; and 3. Helping set up their toy rack.

Last, but not the least, especially for Catholic/Christian parents like me, teach your children that:

1. Jesus is real. Easter is all about Him, not the Easter Bunny. Christmas is not spelled S-a-n-t-a-m-a-s. Even Mahatma Gandhi said that Jesus exhibited God-like nature, when he said that He “was certainly the highest example of one who wished to give everything, asking nothing in return, and not caring what creed might happen to be professed by the recipient.”

Tim and the 'Resurrection' set we made for Easter Sunday (idea taken from www.catholicicing.blogspot.com)

These 10 things are definitely not all the things that children should learn from their parents. I’m sure all of you out there have your own opinions of what parents should teach their kids. Feel free to share in the comments section below!