Teach Your Kid To Apologize When Wrong

There are five magic words,

There are five magic words,

There five magic words this I know

Please, Excuse Me, Sorry, Thank you

And the last one is Pardon Me

The above is a Nursery Rhyme my kids take pleasure in singing. I am fascinated by the wordings of the rhyme. The 5 magic words mentioned in the rhyme are truly magical. Anytime my kids need something from me they use the word: “Please Daddy….” Once I hear that I would be moved to act – it is more like a password. This post will show you ways you can teach your kid to apologize when they are wrong.

 

As human beings, we interact with others throughout our lives. However, as we interact, we clash with each other and hurt people we love. When such happen then arise the need to apologize. Note here that out of the five magic words highlighted above, the hardest to say is Sorry! Believe it or not, many children and adults struggle with apologies. Sorry looks easy to say but heavy in the mouth of many individuals.

Is Saying Sorry Important?

Saying sorry is very important and every child should learn it. Saying sorry is beyond social gesture. Hereunder are the benefits of saying sorry:

It prepares the child early in life to take responsibility for his or her action. If a child learns to take responsibility for the consequence of his or her action early in life, he would not struggle with a lot of things – apologies inclusive.

It allows the child the break to amend his wrongs. When the door of apologies is opened, children quickly learn how to right all wrongs.

It provides the needed boost to heal hurting hearts. During quarrels and disagreements, a lot of exchange of words ensues which might not really be meant but was only spoken under the heat of the moment. Saying sorry starts the process of healing before.

Ways To Teach Your Kid To Apologize When Wrong

1.   Break Your Child’s Ego: For you to achieve anything first, you have to break the ego (or pride) of your child. It is ego that keeps many from apologizing when they are wrong.

2.   Let the child learn when to apologize: It is not enough for your child to just mutter the word I am sorry alone. When your child hurts someone, you need to let him or her know that what he or she did was very bad. They might be having difficulties processing the information but you need to be tactful. Just ask your child how he or she would feel if the injured party was the one who offended him or her.

3.   Let Your Child Learn how to do it properly: Apology is beyond the words “I am sorry.” You might force your child to say the words, but you cannot force him to mean it. To apologize right, the child need to learn components of a good apology which include eye contact, mentioning why apologizing (e.g. I am sorry for tearing your books), promise not to repeat the wrong and use to less tensed tone.

4.   Address Your Child’s Emotions: Here you need to find out from your child why he did what he is apologizing for. Once you discover the motive behind the action, swing in and address the negative emotions e.g. if it was anger, you need to educate the child on how to ease off when angry and how to deal with the emotion.

5.   Be A Good Example: Children learn more by imitation than by instruction. It is your duty as parent to leave a good legacy for your kids in terms of your behavior before them. As a mother, you need to say sorry to their father when you are wrong. Once they see you do it, it would be easier for them to copy you. Not just that, you should apologize to your child at times when you hurt his or her feelings. If you do this, your job is half done.

Conclusion

Your child most of the time might not agree that he was wrong, hence the need for tactfulness in approach. Practice, they say makes perfect, practice all the points with your kid. The more you practice, the better your child gets at it. The beginning of a thing is never easy but the end result always speaks. If you walk this road with your child successfully, you will be a happy parent.

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