Life skills are something we all need, especially our kids. Your child’s brain is at its peak to grasp and learn to think before the age of 12 or 13. Linguists call this the language acquisition device, and this slowly decreases after when we reach puberty. This is why you are advised to teach your kids a second or third language while they are still young, as this will allow them to get a better grasp of the language.
The above can also be said when it comes to life skills. Life skills are valuable lessons that your kids will use throughout their lifetime. This is one of the main reasons you need to instill this to them from an early age. So, without further ado, let’s dive into this blog and learn about some of the life skills you ought to teach your kids.
1. Time management
According to an old adage by Eric Jerome Dickey, “Early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.” I grew up in a strict desi/Indian household, and my mom was never even 5 minutes late to anything in her life. For her, being late was something you ought to be ashamed of, and she taught my sibling and me the importance of being on time or 5 minutes in advance wherever we go.
As parents, we know the importance of time management, and teaching our kids to be on time wherever they go is a good start. Teaching them about this when they are young will instill this in their mind. Learning time management also helps our little munchkins become masters of time, and this can help them do everything from getting to school to getting up or even getting to work on time.
2. Treating a wound
I consider my childhood wounds as war memorabilia because it shows that I had a fun childhood where I did a lot of dumb things and hurt myself. This is why you need to teach your kids how to treat wounds; this is the gateway to learning first aid. This also ensures that your kids are not freaked out when they see blood, which teaches them that this is naturally normal and isn’t something they need to be afraid of.
Give them a game plan and teach them out to do it successfully. Getting hurt is an integral part of being a kid, and this is something completely natural that we, parents, shouldn’t be afraid of. As soon as we learn that our kids are bound to get hurt no matter how safe we are, it will teach us to be more relaxed and teach our kids that getting hurt is normal. This can also teach them to take care of others when they get hurt.
3. Comparison Shopping
Again, as an immigrant kid who has desi parents, I learned to never buy the first thing I saw. My mom would go to several stores to compare prices and would only buy her produces and products at the place where it is least expensive. Even though we live in a middle-class household, my mom never believed that meant we should throw money out the window.
This is why you need to teach your kids to be smart consumers, which takes practice. So, the next time you go shopping, explain as you go. Mention the price of products out loud and talk to your kids about choices. You can also give them an allowance and let them pay for their candy and items that they want. This will teach them to be more contentious about their use of money.
4. Laundry
My mom had always delegated tasks when we were younger; her mindset was that we had to do this on our own when we grew older. She made us do the dishes and laundry, and she didn’t believe in any gender role, she made me and my sibling do every chore because, for her, this would make us more independent.
My mom was a full-time working woman who raised two kids on her own, and for her giving us tasks was a way for her to delegate and teach us that nothing is given to us for free in life. Far too many of my friends waited until we went to college to learn how to do laundry, and it was only then that I was thankful for my mom for teaching me this at a young age.
You can teach your kids as young as 6 or 7. Make it an activity for them and keep a stool nearby the laundry machine to teach them the steps of doing laundry. Walk them step by step through the whole process, and make sure you also teach them how much detergent to put on the machine, what setting to put it on and how to start it.
Sound off in the comments section below and tell us what you want to read next and if you want to read more about skills that your kids ought to have.
