Children pick up bad habits from their surroundings unknowingly. Sometimes they learn them from their parents, siblings, or the other people in their household; they may also get them from their friends or classmates, whether or not they attend an international school in the Philippines.
A few examples of these habits are lying, saying bad words, eating junk foods, and back talking. If you catch your children doing some of them, you may feel the need to scold the habit out of them. Although all of that is done with good intentions, it is not the best approach to solve the problem. There are better and more effective ways to correct a bad habit that doesn’t involve punishments or harsh words.
Let’s continue on and find out exactly what these methods are!
Identify and Eliminate the Cause
When correcting bad habits, you don’t want it to just disappear for a few days or a few weeks. As a caring parent, you want them gone forever and the best way to do so is to identify and eliminate the cause.
More often than not, children practice unwanted behaviors because they’re stressed. If that’s the case, then have a conversation with them to figure out what’s causing them to act out.
Once you’ve done that, you can think of ways to get rid of the stressor. If that is not possible, then the next best course of action is to offer alternatives so they can cope. For instance, if they are stressed because of an upcoming test, then you can help them review their material and teach them how to meditate.
Educate Your Child on the Matter
In order for your children to consciously and willingly abandon a bad habit, they must first be educated about it. As the parent, you could take responsibility for educating them on what is right and what is wrong. This way, they will truly know that their behavior is unacceptable.
These lessons are going to stick to them as they grow up and mature. Every time they think of starting or restarting a bad habit, your words will prompt them to reconsider or give up the thought completely.
Correct Them One at a Time
It might be tempting to try to get rid of all of their bad habits at once. Unfortunately, this plan may not work well. In order for them to understand the implications of their actions, you need to deal with them one at a time.
To accomplish this, prioritize the most harmful and unhealthy habits first. You can then work your way down. Take note, however, that you must deal with them equally. You can’t put more effort into correcting the major ones while doing little corrections on the minor things. This is important so they won’t believe that the latter habits can be considered harmless.
Key Takeaway
Children can pick up bad habits at home or at school – whether or not it’s an international school in the Philippines. This is only normal. Parents should not be alarmed when it happens. Instead, they could tackle the root of the problem and eventually get rid of them with the help of the methods listed above.
