Teaching Your Children How to Stay Out of Trouble

Photo Credit: Just Say No image created by Educlips

There is so much confusion, distraction, and negativity being thrown at our kids. They are being exposed to many inappropriate topics these days. The media tries to tell them that doing wrong things are okay, even though it’s not. It’s very disheartening and concerning. As parents, we can change our mindset and be proactive in helping our children learn right from wrong. We can be intentional in teaching our kids what not to do so we can help prevent them from doing it. We can be a positive influence over our children.

My teaching experience taught me that kids are being exposed to wrong things at such an early age. And they aren’t aware that it is wrong. There are many negative behaviors that they think is okay to do because they were never taught that it was wrong. A child that is allowed to watch TV shows that promote violence, stealing, cheating, lying and other negative behaviors will believe that these behaviors are acceptable if they aren't taught otherwise. A child who listens to songs that promote stealing and taking drugs will have a high probability of thinking that living that way is acceptable. Kids are gullible and influenced so easily by what they see and hear.

I have learned so much over the years from having to guide my students and their parents. Going through these experiences helped me understand that you have to be a proactive parent and regularly teach your kids what not to do. You have to teach them ahead of time, not wait for it to happen first before teaching it. And children need constant reminders to learn. Telling a child one time is not enough to make it retain in their mind.

I have to apply these principles with my children too. I intentionally and regularly teach my kids not to lie, not to cheat, not to steal, etc. I tell them why they shouldn’t do it and I teach them about the punishment that results from participating in this type of behavior. Kids also need to be taught about tough topics such as not taking drugs and not to use guns. The scary fact is that kids are learning about these types of behaviors younger and younger from TV, music ,overhearing adult conversations, talking with their peers, etc. It’s our job as parents to guide them into doing the right thing, so they can stay out of trouble.

As parents, we can teach them how to stay out of trouble. We can teach them to be leaders who do the right thing so they can be positive role model for their peers. As parents, we really need to do our part to help the youth. It starts in our own home. Children are our future leaders. We have to do what we can to lead them on the right path. It will not be easy, but we can do it if we are purposeful. The Bible tells us explicitly what is expected of us when it comes to how we should live our lives. And it’s up to us as parents to help our children, who have been entrusted to us.

It’s easy to complain about the bad things that people do in the world. But it takes courage to be intentional in helping your kids by teaching them and making sure they aren’t filling their minds with garbage. There were many times where I would complain about these things. Then I felt God’s calling on me to create content that would help parents and children. If you need resources to help you with this, please download and use Parenting Toolkit #5- Teaching Your Children How to Stay Out of Trouble. And remember that the Lord is always here to guide you in parenting your children. You can do this!