As your children grow, it becomes increasingly important to teach them healthy habits as early as possible. That is when New Year’s resolutions come in handy. It’s the best time of the year to teach your kids how to change bad habits. There’s no better time than New Year’s to improve on yourself. All you have to do is know where to begin.
First, start by making a list of resolutions.
The best place to start is by making a list of all the things your child wants to work on. In order to get the best variety of ideas, your child should take some time and brainstorm. On your child’s list it should be two to three words to explain their goal. An example of this would be, “to be healthy.”
Some examples of New Year’s resolutions for kids are:
- Limit electronic use
- Be healthy
- Read more
- Stay neat
- Be kind
- Rest more
- Save money
All of these items are great things to consider for your child’s New Year’s resolution list. For instance, if you choose to be healthy this could be your mental, physical or emotional health. An example, of a healthy mental health would be to try new activities to encourage yourself to learn new things.
Meanwhile, if you choose to work on your physical health you would try to be more active and focus on eating healthy. Finally, an example of taking care of your emotional health could be something as simple as interacting with new people or making new friends. Either way, any of these New Year’s resolutions should make it on your list.
Second, cut down your list to two or three.
The biggest mistake you can make while choosing what their New Year’s resolutions is to not narrow them down. Too many New Year’s resolutions can be too much to handle. The best way to narrow down your list of resolutions is by picking out the most doable ones. After that, you’ll have to help them pick out their favorite two to three resolutions. This may take some time, but, don’t panic! You can do it.
Then, get specific with your resolutions.
The next thing your child will want to do is to get specific with their New Year’s resolutions. They’ll be amazed at how easy it can be to stick to it when you set clear rules for yourself. An example of a specific New Year’s resolution is, “I will drink eight bottles of water a day.” This is a perfect example of a clear and easily attainable goal for anyone to achieve.
Lastly, stick to it!
By setting these clear and simple goals for your child, you can make it that much easier on yourself and your child to stick to their goals. Consider, basing your New Year’s resolutions off of your child’s interests. For example, if they want to be healthier and the like sports then their goal should be, “I will play one sport a day to stay healthy.” This will make it easier to reach their goal and have fun without stress.
Overall, following through with your New Year’s resolutions is doable. All you have to do is plan them to suit your interests or in this case your child's interests.
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