I was recently asked the question, "When your kids are all grown up, what is the most important thing you want to have taught them?" I responded with an answer I'm sure many parents would, "I want to have taught my children to be kind human beings who care about their family and friends and have a sense of empathy and respect for all people." It seems like an obvious answer, right? But, it got me thinking—if this is the most important lesson I want to teach my children, am I doing enough to teach it? If you examined an average day, I suspect the values we're driving home most directly are homework, vegetable eating, and bedtime independence.
Fortunately not long after, I was asked to moderate a webinar with the amazing Ileen Henderson from the Bright Horizons Foundation for Children on "Sparking Empathy in Your Child." Working on the content for the webinar with Ileen has totally opened my eyes to how to walk the talk when it comes to making kindness the formative value for our family in more meaningful ways. She has such a wealth of knowledge on the subject and shares so many great tips and ideas (several that I've already put into practice in my house!). Tune in for what I'm sure is going to be a great discussion on how we all can raise a generation of kind and caring kids.
Editor's Note: A recording of Sparking Empathy in Your Child webinar is now available.
I'm mom to two kids and I find myself constantly surprised by how amazing, challenging, fun and exhausting being a mom can be. I read all the books, I talked to lots of parents and yet I still seem to always think, "No one ever told me about THAT!" Here on the blog I try and share some of the trials and tribulations of motherhood and the pearls of wisdom I discover along the way.