New Year offers new beginnings and new life lessons, so parents, why not begin 2025 by teaching your kids something they are yet to learn? While we are sure your children must have learned a lot of things in 2024, it is time to teach them something new as the New Year is upon us. Here are some basic life mantras that your kiddos can benefit from for a better future.
Encourage them to look away from their gadgets and screens
This is one of the most important things that parents should teach their kids this New Year. With children spending more and more time with their gadgets, they need to be mindful of their usage of the same. Spending long hours in front of a screen will hamper their interpersonal skills and mental growth. It only gets worse if your kiddos are tweens or teens who have access to social media platforms.
So, encourage your child to turn off their gadgets once they are done with their school work. Instead, they can do something creative that doesn’t add to their screen time. Spending hours on social media platforms will also do no good. Hence, sit with your kiddo and lay some interesting options in front of them, like joining some hobby classes, playing with their friends, joining a book club, etc. This will save them from becoming a couch potato.
This might be a little hard for your kids, especially for your tweens and teens, considering they are connected with their friends through social media. However, constantly encouraging them will help them see the world outside the limits of their screen. With your constant effort and reminders, we assure you they will eventually spend less time in front of the screen and more time exploring the world around them. You can also consult a specialist to convince your kiddos.
Teach them the importance of budgeting and saving money
If you have yet to advise your child to save money whenever possible, now is the time. This New Year, make sure you sit with them and teach them the importance of saving money, even if they start small. With the current rate of inflation, this is one of the most helpful things a parent can teach their kids. To help them start on their saving journey, open a savings account for them, show them how things work, and let them see at the end of the month how much they have managed to save.
This life lesson will not only help them now but also in the future. Moreover, this will lead to them not depending on anyone for the money they spend, in good as well as bad times. For toddlers, you can start with piggy banks and let them check how much they have managed to save at the end of three months. Along with this, do emphasize that they should always try budgeting and spending their money wisely instead of splurging on everything all the time.
Motivate your kids to look after their physical and mental health
We all know what happens when one neglects their physical or mental health. Hence, motivate your kids to do some exercises, be mindful of their diet, and keep their mental health in check. Your children might find it difficult to commit to these things at first, but by incorporating them into their daily schedules, they will ace this too.
So, parents, no matter if your kid is aged 6 or 16, this New Year, teach them the advantages of physical and mental well-being. Do some exercises with them, motivate them to eat clean (but don’t stop them from occasionally indulging their taste buds), and encourage them to talk it out if they are feeling stressed. They can share their worries with you or a mental health professional to clear their mind when life gets too chaotic.
Other than these, this New Year, parents can also teach their kids the joy of writing in a journal. This will help your kiddos express themselves freely, which can be quite liberating. You can also encourage your child to surround themselves with positive-minded people, spend time with their family, be humble and kind, and work on some new skills.
However, don’t expect your little one to do all these from day one. Let them tackle these new life lessons one at a time, incorporating new healthy habits slowly throughout 2025. Incorporating them slowly will ensure they become a part of their lifestyle instead of being something they are obligated to do. So, just be supportive and keep reminding them of all the good habits that they can take up this year to ensure their future is even better.
