Self-Control - Building Character in your Children

10 Activities about SELF CONTROL:

1) DEFINING SELF CONTROL Not doing what you feel like doing because you know it’s what God wants. Explain that having self control does NOT mean you won’t feel like hitting your brother or throwing the toy or slamming the door. It just means you don’t act on those feelings.

2) BUILDING WORDS Read Jeremiah 24:5-7. God says of his people, that He will build them up, not tear them down. Our words can do those two things as well; they can build up and they can tear down. In fact, nearly all our words fall into those two categories. Teach your children to control their tongue by reminding them to only speak building words.

3) DELAYED GRATIFICATION It’s never too early to start teaching children delayed gratification. Not all rewards are instant! If children help Mom clean the house today, make it a reward to go to the park the next day. The younger children are, the less time they can wait and still be able to associate the two events.

4) ANGER MANAGEMENT Anger in preschoolers is usually rooted in frustration. Typically, it’s because they are not getting their way or they are not being understood. Some tips to help children control this emotion are; 1) Help them use words. If they can’t express themselves, sometimes you can do it for them. “You are frustrated that we can’t go outside to play right now, I understand.” Just being understood can help calm the storm. 2) If they are young, distract them. They’d rather be happy! 3) If they are older, separate them from the situation.

5) NEVER BORED The ability to occupy your mind constructively definitely promotes self control. Billy Graham is quoted as saying, “Only those who want everything done for them are bored.” Teach your children to make their own fun. There’s never an excuse to be bored! “Only small minds are bored” ~ unknown

6) MARSHMALLOW EXPERIMENT Leave your child alone with a marshmallow and a bell. Tell them that if they ring the bell, you will return and they can eat the marshmallow, OR, if they wait for you to come back into the room on your own, they can have 2 marshmallows. See what happens and use the example to talk about and explain self control.

7) FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT Make a fruit tree poster, or some other way to display the fruits of the Spirit that are listed in Galatians 5:22-23. How does self control help us with the other fruits?

8) YES MOMMY. “Self-control is learned in small children by having to say “no” to themselves and “yes” to their parents. We therefore, must offer our children especially strong leadership for the first few years of their life, giving them little say in the decisions we make for them. They must not be included as a part of the “parental leadership team,” not only because they must learn the self-denial which comes from following parental leadership, but because psychologically, their small shoulders can’t handle the stress of running the home. Children, once relieved of such duties, ultimately become secure and happy.” (Reb Bradley) Teach your children to respond to you immediately with a clear “Yes, Mommy.”