The Vital Importance of Teaching you Children at Home

From: Ezine Articles

It will really help if I will always be reminded of such parenting stuff.


Parents often put considerable effort into selecting the right school for their children, and make huge sacrifices to save enough money to send their children to college, because they know that a good education is one of the best ways of ensuring a successful career and a secure and happy adult life for their children. In many cases however focusing on school and college leads to parents neglecting another critically important element of a child's education - teaching your children at home.

Normal family life gives parents dozens of opportunities to teach children things that they will find both interesting and helpful as the grow up and, although both parents are busy people with careers of their own in many families today, you'll be surprised at just how easy it is to find time for your children if you organize your daily schedule.

Teaching children at home is not a matter of sitting down with them in a formal 'school-like' setting but requires you to look at everyday activities and use these to provide your teaching materials. Teaching children at home doesn't need be boring either and, if tackled correctly, can be great fun for both parents and children.

One secret lies in thinking about what you're doing and the extent to which your children understand your activity. For example, how many times have you rushed home from work to get in ahead of your kids from school and then sat them down in front of the television while you prepare supper? What are the thought processes going through your mind? You've had a hard day and all you want to do is sit down and relax but first you've got to feed the kids, so you get them out from underfoot so that you can get on quickly, get them fed and then finally relax.

Many thousands of parents do this every day and everyone misses out as a result. Why not try doing things differently.

First, you can start by getting the kids to help with preparing supper instead of sitting glued to a mindless box. Sending your kids out into the world knowing how to boil an egg and make toast and not a lot else isn't much help, but getting them interested in cooking will provide them with a much needed life skill.

Second, it gives both you and the kids the opportunity to talk - something that is lacking in far too many households. Letting your kids tell you about their successes and failures at school, simply listening to what's on their minds and letting them question you about your own experiences and ask for your advice is invaluable for both parent and kids. In addition, you'll be surprised at the number of problems you can avoid simply by knowing what your kids are doing, what they're thinking and how they're feeling.

Thirdly, it's the best way to relax! Relaxation after a long hard day at work doesn't mean flopping down on the couch for an hour or two, it simply means giving yourself a change of scene. Putting your working day behind you and enjoying the company of your kids is one of the very best ways to unwind after a long hard day at work.

There are literally hundred of examples of things which we do every day at home that can be turned into valuable teaching lessons, helping your children to develop and grow and allowing everyone to enjoy themselves at the same time.

Teaching is not just for the school teachers and there is a great deal of value for everybody concerned in teaching children at home.