Simple Sixes: A Guide for Parents Part 3 of 6

HOME ZONE:
Physical safety is so essential that without it, the development of a strong and healthy self esteem is extremely limited. Children need to develop a sense of assuredness that there are people that they can count on. A loving atmosphere is essential for all family members!!! One of the most fundamental ways we demonstrate our love for our children is by giving them a safe and secure place
that is uniquely theirs. Let's remember that we can not shield our children from all the "negative" occurrences from the outside world, thus, we must make the home a safe zone. One way we can achieve this is by banning put-downs! We see this when older children siblings put down younger siblings. You can say to older siblings " suppose you are 5 and someone called you dumb--how would you feel?"
Also, as parents we need to monitor our put downs to our children. We should teach our children that we expect them to "pull each other up" , not bring them down. When you hear the devastating words " you're dumb" label that IMMEDIATELY as a put down the INSTANT you hear it. Calling an unkind name makes a child want to continue that behavior. Remember I wrote about modeling? We need to remember to model positive speaking and behavior. Try it next time your child spills milk or tracks snow in the house.
The deeper the roots of home zone self esteem, the better equipped children are to behave in school and interact with peers. Their inner feelings and self worth will be their guides of their choice of friends. If you see that a particular friend is a positive influence on your child ENCOURAGE it!
It is so clear that this skill trickles into many facets of our children's lives!!!!!