Teaching your child to say sorry is one of the biggest challenges that many parents face while disciplining their kids. When we talk about manners the most difficult thing that comes across is how to teach your child to say sorry.
Learning to apologise is an integral part of a child’s character and this is how a child learns to take responsibility for their mistakes.
This is the reason why you must start teaching your child to say sorry at an early stage.
Here are a few ways which can help you teach your child to say sorry:
Start young
If you have a toddler, it’ll be easier for you to teach them as they know how a little hug can work its magic when they have done something wrong. Try to model hugs for anyone hurt so that your early beginners learn that they have done something wrong and need to apologise.
Become a role model for your kids
If you believe that you have misbehaved, do not hesitate to apologise right in front of your kids.
- Make sure to say sorry after any type of overreaction.
- If you think you shouted on your kid for no reason, tell them that you were under pressure and shouldn’t have behaved that way.
- Remind them repeatedly how much you love them. Tell them that a parent is never perfect and also make mistakes. Take the onus of mistakes in front of them and apologise.
- Saying sorry should not be considered a weakness and should always be counted as a sign of strength.
Do not ever use apologies for manipulation
I have seen kids who learn to say ‘sorry’ or ‘excuse me’ right after they commit an offence and use it as a technique for an easy way for people to overlook their mistakes. This often becomes a habit of those children whose parents force them to apologise in society, which is not a good idea at all.
Teach to apologise genuinely
Forcing feelings may lead to fake apologies in your child. They often start believing that it is fine to be insincere and saying sorry would mend things easily. You must give some time to punish your child so that they may think of apologising themselves. This way they will actually mean when they say something.
Accept that your child is being a brat instead of placing the blame on others.
My 3-year-old knows when she to apologise because I have said sorry to her whenever I misbehaved or did something wrong. That’s why it is important to teach your child to apologise as early as possible and do not think that you will learn the same as they grow old.
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