Once we are confident sharing and creating boundaries, we are ready for the next step: RULES.
How important is it to have a deep understanding of the rules around us? We are constantly required to behave ethically and respectfully, and if we want to contribute to society, we must follow rules and guidelines.
That’s why is important to include rules as part of daily life: we can think about different categories we could create rules about and then involve our kids in the process.
Remember to stay within 4-5 rules per category and to introduce one category every 1 or 2 weeks, observing your child and being sure he interiorized the previous rules and is ready for more.
Categories: what to make rules about.
- Safety – “We wear our seatbelts in the car”
- Physical behavior towards each other – “We are gentle with each other”
- Daily routines – “We take turns setting the table each night”
- Health – “We eat sugared things once per day”
- Respect for each other – “We knock before going into each other’s rooms”
- Manners – “We wait until others have finished talking before we talk”
The hardest part of being adults is that we must model constantly if we want our kids to respect the rules: kids often observe much more than they listen!
You are now ready to establish your family or class rules: make an appointment with all the group members and ask them to share their thoughts, vote, and look for a common agreement when prioritizing the rules that have to be respected to keep everyone safe.
Write them down together, draw, decorate, and put them where everybody can see!
