I remember back when I was writing CHILDREN OF CHARACTER, my then six-year-old niece went to a pet store to buy a gerbil. The wise owner of the store told her, “First pick it up and hold it. It you can’t cuddle with it, then you aren’t ready to keep it as a pet.”
“Human beings are always searching for simple, easy ways to grasp complex and important ideas. It’s not an accident that for thousands of years, in every culture and language in the world, people have been sharing short, pithy sayings that capture eternal truths in a few well-chosen words. In fact, one such saying has found …
““Are we there yet?” What parent has heard that little voice coming from the back seat of the car five minutes after driving out of the garage at the very beginning of a long trip and hasn’t sighed and asked themselves, “Is this all really worth it?” When it comes to taking your children along …
“If I could teach parents just one lesson from all the parenting books that I have read, and all the lectures I have heard and all the articles that I have either read or written, there is absolutely no question in my mind that what one lesson would be. It is the most important message …
“Even though “character education” has become fashionable only in the past few year, I have had the privilege of spending the last twenty years of my life teaching, lecturing, and giving workshops to parents about the challenges of raising children who are steeped in values and whose daily behavior is a reflection of good character. …
“Human beings are always searching for simple, easy ways to grasp complex and important ideas. It’s not an accident that for thousands of years, in every culture and language in the world, people have been sharing short, pithy sayings that capture eternal truths in a few well-chosen words. In fact, one such saying has found …
“Perhaps the five words of Biblical advice known to more people than any others are found in the phrase, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” from Chapter nineteen of Leviticus. Of course this is advice more easily given than taken. For how many of us really have the ability to love our neighbors in the first …
“ There are hundreds of ways to illustrate your values, to show your children by example the kind of adult you want them to become. What you want your children to learn is that we make choices about ethical behavior every single day. It is not something that happens self-consciously, or only under duress. To …
“ If you look back on your life, you will probably acknowledge that it was the little things, the small gestures of support, encouragement and love that meant the most to you. Whether they came from a parent, a colleague at work, a high-school sweetheart or a life companion, these simple, heartfelt reminders of their …
“ Everything teaches something. Here are five ways to help your children develop an ethical-action consciousness in their everyday lives. First, be an ethical-action cheerleader, and acknowledge your children’s positive behavior. Few learning experiences are as effective as being caught in the act of doing something right. One of the most important things you can …
Read More “Five Ways to Develop an Ethical-Action Consciousness in Children”
“A few summers ago we went on a driving trip to the Grand Canyon. I remember one particular day standing near some tourists high up on the edge of the canyon looking down into a deep and beautiful gorge that seemed to stretch on forever. Amidst all the “Oohs,” and “Ahhs,” I overheard one of …
“I will never forget how intensely uncomfortable I felt sitting in a restaurant with a friend one day, as she pointed to her young son and daughter sitting in the booth next to her and casually asked me, “Tell me the truth, which one of them do you think is more beautiful?”
“The other day I was watching a group of preschool children playing together at my synagogue. At the same time that I was thinking how cute and adorable they were, I realized that I really had no idea exactly what kind of adults these children would grow up to become. I suddenly imagined Buford Furrow …
“For most of us holidays are times of joy and celebration, of family gatherings and too much food, of songs and parties and gifts. But holidays also provide many of the best teaching opportunities for parents of the entire year.
“The best parenting is parenting that leads your children to become their own best teachers and life-guides. In essence it is the art of helping them to develop within an “internal parent” whom they can call upon for guidance, support, encouragement and wisdom for the rest of their lives.