What is Responsibility?
This is a broad term which means many different things, including:
*Being dependable
*Keeping one’s word and agreements
*Meeting one’s commitments
*Doing something to the best of one's ability
*Being accountable for one’s behaviour
*Accepting credit when doing things right and also admitting mistakes
*Being a contributing member of a family, community and society
Being responsible is a key to children’s success both in school and in the larger world when they grow up
Children learning to be responsible means they learn to be self-disciplined, they learn to use self-control, they learn to be accountable and trustworthy for their actions.
Children often lack this character trait because it’s quite easy for parents or teachers to do everything for them, especially for children at this age (4 years old or younger). The following are teaching strategies for both in school and at home, as we believe that consistent application and practice enable the children to build their character in the foundation years. Through this process, we are training our children to be dependable, punctual, organised and accountable for their words and actions.
Teaching Strategies in Classroom & at Home
As a teacher, as a parent or the caretaker, we are all role models to our children. The best way to teach responsibility is to be responsible yourself. Be responsible with your own life, be neat and organised, picking up after yourself, be punctual and dependable--children will learn best from your action and behaviour. By building your own practice of responsibility within your home environment or in the classroom, you are showing the children how responsibility look like and how it should be done.
Teaching Strategies in Classroom
Define - Teachers helping our children to define the term “responsibility”. Have them identify and name responsibilities that they already have both at home and in school. Let them think of new responsibilities that they can take on at home and in school.
Provide clear class rules & expectation
Provide a structured classroom where all the children are clear about how you want things to go. e.g.. tables are cleaned every time after work, neat and tidy in the classroom, put away stuffs after use, be punctual for the class everyday, pass up the homework on time, etc.
Without a set of clear rules and expectations, the classroom will be filled with a bunch of irresponsible children.
Provide clear classroom consequences
Provide a clear set of consequences to follow through for the children that do not upkeep the expectations and rules of the classroom. e.g.. when a child forgets to bring his or her finished homework to school, his or her name will be written on the white board for the rest of the class to remind him or her at the end of the day to bring his or her homework on the next day.
Give out classroom duties
Every classroom has a long list of things that need to be done everyday. Let the children take some of the workload off of you and give the children the responsibility of classroom duties. e.g.. sharpening of pencils, filing your paperwork, collecting papers, cleaning the desks, organising the bookshelves, etc.
Compliment children when they demonstrate the act of responsibility
Compliment using the word “….you are so responsible.” Catch the children doing the right thing and praise them for being responsible. Make it known in your classroom. This will help your class children to understand what responsibility looks like and serves as a great affirmation for the child who demonstrated responsibility.
Post signs about responsibility in your classroom, play games about it, talk about the word responsibility daily.
Teaching responsibilities at home
Helping your children understand responsibility by giving them some responsibilities of their own whenever appropriate. e.g.. putting dishes away, transferring laundry from the basket to the washing machine, set the table, wipe out sink after brushing teeth, turn off all the lights at home when family is going out, tidy up his/her room, dust a room, open and hold the door for others…all age appropriate chores/tasks.
Affirmation - catch your children doing the right thing. When you see them demonstrating a responsible act, praise them sincerely and clearly so that they understand when they are showing up with this good character.
Dual role of Parents
The 2 important roles that parents have in helping children to become responsible are:-
Nurturing/Caring role is when you are expressing and communicating unconditional love to your children. You are kind and loving to your children no matter what happens. You listen to them, invest your precious time with them, support them and are affectionate with them. This allows your children to take risks, to make mistakes, knowing that they are loved and supported all the time.
Structure/Executive role is when you set limits and boundaries, imposing discipline -you establish consequences for breaking rules and follow through on those consequences, giving them guidelines and set standards of acceptable behaviours. It is in this role that you hold your children accountable for their behaviour which fosters the development of a sense of responsibility in them.
Our children require us as parents to carry out both roles. When they are raised in the home with both love and support along with clear boundaries, limits, rules and consequences, they grow up as loving, being confident with the unconditional love and support from parents that also impose discipline. This is healthy parenting and will lead to raising healthy children.