Episode 3: Helping your Kid Create Great Habits

welcome to Season 2!

Engaging, challenging, and empowering parents in raising well-rounded children through combining educational research to everyday life.

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on today’s episode…

Healthy habits are awesome! They don’t establish themselves, however. Learn how to help your kids analyze areas where they need to create good habits and how to keep them motivated to put forth their best effort by emphasizing the benefits of the habit once it’s become second-nature to them.

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insights

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Outline

According to Webster dictionary, habit means, “an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary.” 

Key words in that definition: acquired behavior, nearly/completely involuntary. 

Everyday, we have choices to make. Even when certain behaviors become habits, there’s still a choice to be made.

• Brushing your teeth: an acquired behavior that’s nearly involuntary

• Going to the gym: an acquired behavior that’s nearly involuntary

• Reading: an acquired behavior that’s nearly involuntary

Any habit (smoking, drinking coffee, making your bed, drinking water, running, going to bed at a decent time, etc) all follow the same pattern– acquired behaviors that become nearly involuntary.

Zig Ziglar said, “you were born to win. But to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win.” That’s the motivation guiding your conversation with your kids. 

3 TOPICS TO GUIDE YOUR CONVERSATION: Modify as needed for the age groups

1. Plan– what are areas that can improve by creating healthy habits?
   Ex: hygiene; room/closet organization; school supplies/backpack organization; strategizing tasks

2. Prepare– how can you prepare for success with these habits?
   Ex: room organization: put clothes in hamper/hang them, have a spot for shoes, put away hygiene products after use; strategizing tasks: paper/phone calendar use, to do lists, prioritizing/limiting tasks

3. Expect– a positive mindset that you will succeed in your efforts of creating great habits.
   Believing that the habit will be helpful and beneficial… and that you will be able to keep it!

Outro

Don’t let this be just another episode you listened to. Practice the conversation you just learned about in the car, around the dinner table, on a walk, or on the couch! Remember to turn screens off and prioritize these moments of discipleship. 2 things will happen when you do that:

1. Your kids will witness you practice a new skill and most importantly,

2. When kids are given the opportunity to digest new information with you, their #1 teacher, in their safe space, they begin welcoming new challenges, as their curiosity, competence, and confidence flourishes… making them lifelong learners.