A parent’s most important job is to ensure that their child grows up to be a kind, polite, and respectful individual. With the world being as fast-paced and technology-driven as it is, teaching a child good and basic manners and etiquette is more important than ever. While it is never too late to teach a child good habits, the earlier you start, the faster they will make it part of their lives. Teaching please and thank you to your child is an indicator of how well they are brought up.

Here is the list of manners that your child should learn.

Use the magic words

The easiest way to make your child learn to say “Thank you”, “Sorry”, and “Please” is to make them hear you saying this every day and in a variety of situations. This is one of the first manners that a parent needs to teach a child. They must say “please” when they ask for something and “thank you” when they get something right from a young age. By starting to use these words at home, it will soon begin to come naturally to them later.

Basic table manners

Table manners are a critical social skill. Teach them basic table manners such as washing hands before meals, putting napkins on the lap, not talking with a mouth full of food, and clearing dishes from the table. It also involves waiting to eat until everyone is served. No matter if it is a big family holiday or your ordinary family meal, they should be able to handle basic table manners.

Not to Interrupt

It is a known fact that children always try to get your attention. But when they should not interrupt in the middle of a conversation. For them waiting to speak can feel like torture. Teach them if they want to get someone’s attention straight away they should use the phrase “Excuse me”. But then most important is to teach them “Is it acceptable and important to interrupt?”

Phone Etiquette

While you make a phone call, you should introduce yourself first and then ask for the person you are calling. While answering the phone for anyone else, teach them to say ” May I know who is calling so I could tell my mother?” Instead of “Who is this?” That sounds very rude. Also, teach them not to shout across the house for you rather walk over to you to inform you that you have a phone call.

Greeting Someone

Greeting someone by name is a sign of respect, it makes them feel valued. Always teach your child to greet an adult by name along with initials such as Miss, Mrs, and Mr. It is important to always look in the eyes while having a conversation. And they should know basic manners like maintaining polite conversations such as asking the person “How are you?” Or simply able to reply to them politely whatever they are asking.

No comments on someone’s physical appearance

It is very rude to comment on someone’s physical attributes unless it is to compliment, which is always welcome. Never should they say their negative opinions to anyone. If this is not taught to a child early in their life, they might think it is okay to make fun of another person, be in the playgrounds or their school friends from an international school. They have to be told that it is not acceptable to hurt someone else’s feelings by bullying or making fun of them, be it in private or public.

Be Empathetic

Teach them what empathy means and how this is a treasured quality. Get your child into the habit of helping people.  Such as holding doors for someone or helping carry a bag. A helping hand ready to assist is always welcome. This also teaches them to be kind towards others. This teaches them compassion.

Being Patient

When going out with parents, a child should learn to be patient instead of running around, causing troubles. When meeting relatives or going to someone’s house, they should not be prying around the house or touching things. Many people see this as a lack of manner.

Ask for permission before taking anything.

If a child wants to take something that is not their own, they need to know that asking for permission is the right thing to do. This holds true even if the object is their moms or dads. It is also essential to teach them that they need to return whatever they have borrowed and thank the lender for it. 

Knocking on closed doors

A child needs to be taught that privacy is essential even at home. When a door is closed, it is polite to knock and ask for permission to enter respectfully. It is one of the good manners where parents need to lead by example and watch as their children pick it up.

In Conclusion

The reason why many young people today do not know much about etiquette is that as a child they never learned it. In schools, the overburdening of the syllabus leaves no time to learn such basic manners. Many schools do have a value education class but that remains the most neglected subject. That is when we as a parent should come forward to teach our kids the basic manners.

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