As parents, we can be very good at telling our kids how they should behave. But are we teaching them to live in a limited way? Here are ten tips that will help you teach lasting life skills for an enriched and rewarding life that will also equip them to be contributing members of a free society.
Putting Food On The Table
Get your teen involved in drawing up the weekly grocery list. Teach them to do so within an allocated budget. This includes sufficient food for meals, school lunches, snacks, toiletries, and cleaning items. Show them how to prepare basic meals. They also need to know what a healthy diet includes.
Laundry
Show your teen how to operate the washing machine and dryer. Explain the importance of sorting clothes according to labels and colors. Teach them how to care for equipment, such as not overloading, and about eco cycles. They must be able to complete a cycle of washing, drying, and packing away. Teens also need to know how to do a hand wash.
Caring For A Pet
Emphasize that getting a pet is a lifelong obligation for as long as the animal lives. It must always have plenty of fresh drinking water, be fed a suitable diet and amount of food, have its vaccinations, and be sterilized. Pets need interaction, play, and exercise.
Driving Safety And License
Before leaving home, your teen should have acquired a driver’s license. They should know not to drive under the influence of alcohol and drugs, including prescription meds. Send them on an advanced driver training program to learn to handle a vehicle in all weather and road conditions.
Household Hygiene
Teach the importance of regular house cleaning along with the how-to of cleaning showers, toilets, and dishes. A teen should know how to sweep, vacuum, wash floors, sort the garbage, and clean all home surfaces.
Personal Grooming
Teach your teen never to go to bed dirty and to clean and groom themselves daily. They should know how to care for their skin and hair, how to use and dispose of sanitary products hygienically, and to maintain facial and body hair. Ensure that they know how to dress for different occasions, such as an interview or formal event.
Budgets
A teen should know how to draw up and manage a budget. They should be aware of how mortgages, medical aid, and insurances work, how to do banking safely online, and the risks and benefits of credit.
First Aid
Send your teen on a first aid course. Teach them which items should be kept in a first aid kit. Equip them with the knowledge of how to handle a medical emergency and the importance of accessible emergency numbers.
Technology
No job in the modern world does not require computer skills. Every teen needs to have mastered these competencies before they start their post-school studies or enter the workforce. They also need to be equipped with a desktop or laptop suitable for their age, as well as all the gadgets teens need, which you can find on Lenovo.com.
Values
Educate teens on the importance of family, healthy relationships, conflict management, and good manners. Help them to understand work-life balance and to do work that they are proud of. Teach them to nurture themselves and explore their passions.
As kids move from their teens into adulthood, you need to prepare them to be independent, compassionate, responsible, and fulfilled.
