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By Sharon Hurley Hall

As a parent it’s always a tough call as to what you should pull your kids up about and what you should let go. Don’t look at the parenting books; they’re no help at all. Some of them swear by routine and structure; others
suggest that these small people just need to be left to flower. It’s the same when it comes to education. Some countries march their kids into school just before the age of five; others are happy to wait till seven. So who’s right and how do you decide what to do in your own home? I suppose it depends on whether you take a long view.

In my house, we tend to think about the issues that will create good lifelong habits. So we emphasize things like:

• putting things away when you’ve finished with them
• tidying up at the end of the day
• clearing your plate because it’s wrong to waste food when people are starving
• using something if you have asked for it and received it
• being polite to others, both within and outside the family
• sharing – which is tough for an only child
• kindness

We also try to keep a certain structure to the day, so that meals happen roughly when they’re supposed to. That part is not because we think the world will end if a meal is late, but because we know what our child is like when she gets hungry. You only have to sit through so many tantrums before you learn that one.

However, my daughter made me think the other day when she said there were too many rules. After all, she’s only five. However, I believe that if can get certain types of behavior to become habitual then you will create a much better adjusted person, a well rounded person. I don’t think I can give up on sweating the small stuff, because although it may be small now, it could be much bigger later on.

I did listen to my daughter, though, and I made a decision. Every now and then we will have a day where we throw the rules out the window, and just enjoy life. That’s a good life lesson too.

About the author

Sharon Hurley Hall is a born again blogger who has been writing for more than 20 years. Sharon runs the freelance mentoring blog, Get Paid To Write Online.