The Magic Words

Even before children are born, they are able to hear you. In fact, babies learn the sounds of their native language by the time they are six months old! This means that even before they start speaking themselves, they are listening to you, and learning to form their own words.


• Start using words and phrases like ‘please,’ ‘thank you,’ I’m sorry,’ ‘excuse me,’ and ‘may I?’ as much as possible when interacting with your child. Even though it may sound silly for a parent to ask their child something such as “may I change your diaper?” focusing on speaking these words as much as possible around your child will make it easier for them to do the same once they are able to start speaking.


Your young child may have a hard time grasping why we need manners, and what good they will do for them, so the best thing to do is to consistently incorporate proper etiquette in your everyday routine. Repetitiveness is the key!


• By the time your child begins to speak, they are able to say the words you have been trying so hard to teach them. By age 21/2, they should be able to remember to say things such as please and thank you. This shows appreciation and respect. It is also important to encourage your child to maintain eye contact while speaking to another person. You should prompt your child to say any of these things whenever they may forget. However, these words are only as good as the sincerity shown while speaking them. It must be authentic and sincerely spoken; otherwise it is just as empty as saying nothing at all. This also goes for apologies. In cases when your child should apologize to another person, actions speak louder than words. A hug, a note or even a picture, along with an apology, make it more heartfelt and sincere.



“I have been a believer in the magic of language since, at a very early age, I discovered that some words got me into trouble, and others got me out.”
-Katherine Dunn

Manners and Proper Etiquette

Manners and proper etiquette is a very important subject, so the next few posts will all be related to this topic. This post is about the basics of teaching a child something new, and the next few posts will deal with specific topics related to proper manners, as well as ways to go about teaching your child these specific things. Children are basically mimics. They repeat things that are done and spoken around them.

When it comes to teaching your child about good manners and proper etiquette, there are three important things to remember.

1. Reinforcement and encouragement

2. Set a good example

3. Avoid ignoring bad behavior

Reinforcement and encouragement, with helpful reminders and prompts from time to time are the keys to success when teaching a child proper etiquette. Repetition is the key here! They may not learn something the very first time they are taught, but if they do it or are reminded to do it daily, there is a much better chance of their brain wiring itself to remember these things in the future.

You must also remember to always set a good example! Your child having good manners is a direct reflection on you as a parent. It is also something that is a necessity in their lives and will remain so forever.

When teaching any form of manners, make sure you avoid ignoring bad behavior or improper etiquette, no matter where you are, or what may be going on at the time. As soon as your child forgets or breaks a rule, you must address the issue right away. This is very important. It will not work if you come home from the store and then tell your child what they may have done wrong. You need to nip it in the bud right then and there. Do not make it a negative experience; learning is almost impossible for a child if they do not feel safe and secure. The minute you raise your hand or your voice, the learning part of their brain stops, and the part of the brain responsible for threat and stress takes over. Simply inform your child patiently how it is done best, and why it is done that way. Later on you may want to bring up the issue again if you wish to explain yourself further, or if your child has any questions for you.

Always remember to praise your child for any good behavior. The more praise your child receives, the more likely they will be to repeat the good behavior!

“The hardest job kid’s face today is learning good manners without seeing any.”

-Fred Astaire

Beyond Basics

What if, instead of just teaching the basics, we decided to make it a point that we teach our child even more. When I say “beyond the basics” I simply mean that I am not talking about learning the alphabet, counting to ten, or learning to color inside the lines. Why is it that we stop there? I believe our young children should also learn about life basics such as kindness, self-esteem, and honesty. The first few years of a child’s life are so critical and important, yet we as adults are only taught to focus on the basic things in life, so they are able to function in a kindergarten class. I believe we should do more.

The human brain can handle more than we give it credit for. A child’s brain is no less high-functioning than an adult’s brain. It is actually doing a lot more work than an adult’s brain does. Your child’s brain is basically hard-wired by the time they reach the age of six. That means you only have six years to create and mold your child into the type of adult you would be proud to have raised.

My goal in creating this blog is to gather tons of information on a wide variety of subjects, characteristics, and abilities I believe are extremely important for a person to acquire, and present them to the reader in a way that they will be able to both access and comprehend in an easy manner. That is not to say that I am trying to dumb it down for the reader, it is, however, that I have tried to simplify this process of teaching your child as much as possible, in the short amount of time there is before the child’s brain has become hardwired.

Obviously, learning is something humans are able to do for their entire life, and I am not saying that after age six there is no hope of changing someone. However it is becoming well known that the fine-tuning of a child’s brain happens between ages three and six. By the time they are six years old, a child's brain has reached almost 95% of its capacity and is four times the size it was at birth. These are the critical years, during which an incredible amount of wiring takes place in the parts of the brain involved with focusing attention, organizing actions, learning new ideas, and planning activities.

I understand that as a parent, you probably don’t have much extra time to learn innovative ways of teaching your child new ideas. But that is the beauty of this blog. Every post will have a new idea of how to get the point across in a simple, but effective manner. Most of the ways of learning will be able to take place while you are doing your day to day routines.

I encourage anyone with children, or anyone involved in a young child’s life, to follow my blog and read about different ways of educating and enlightening your child so they are able to expand their minds. Come back often to discover the many ways you are able to teach your wonderchild beyond the basics.