As you probably know already, time flies. It may seem like just yesterday you were bringing your kiddos home from the hospital, and now they’re teenagers, making decisions of their own and growing into their own identities. That said, if life is flying and they’re getting older, then you want to try and teach them what they need to survive and thrive in adulthood. Sure, school teaches them some things, but it’s also your job to educate them in other areas. Here are a few of the basic life skills you can teach your teenagers to ensure that they step bravely and confidently into independence.
Safe Driving Practices
Driving safely and taking care of one’s car are important skills that may often hit home harder if parents explain them rather than driver’s education teachers. For example, teenagers zone out in driver’s ed, but if you sit down with them and tell them the cost of driving while distracted, they may understand the cost better. In the simplest sense, you can teach your kid how to drive and impart your own personal knowledge that will impact how they end up driving in the future.
Money and Budgeting Skills
Probably one of the most important life skills you can teach your teenagers is about money and budgeting. When kids are in school, they might only have one class that’s centered around money and budgeting—that’s not really enough for them to know how to handle their money in college and for their future. Do them a favor and go through some key money and budgeting tips. Make a budget with them and stick to it, help them apply for a credit card and learn how to use it properly, show them how to invest, and teach them the value of giving money to charity. The more you impart, the better their financial future will look.
Healthy Nourishment Routines
The way your child reacts in the kitchen has a lot to do with what you’ve taught them. If they go straight to the pantry and the processed foods, then it’s time to get them started on the path to healthy nourishment. This means teaching them how to make a few go-to dishes that will fill their bellies without harming their bodies. Apart from the actual cooking skills, you should teach your kids how to grocery shop—buying groceries is essential to learning how to cook. Help them identify different ingredients and flavors so that they can play around with recipes themselves.
Emotional Intelligence and Other Social Skills
Another essential life skill to teach your kids is emotional intelligence (dealing with emotions in general) and other key social skills. How your child reacts to being angry or sad is something that you can help them with—the more you talk about emotions, the easier it is to process them. The most important thing you can do to teach this skill is to provide your child with a space where they feel open and free to share their emotions.
When a person works on and improves their emotional intelligence, then their ability to refine other social skills improves as well. They’ll learn how best to empathize with others, how to talk to people intense situations, and so much more.
These are just a few of the very many skills that parents can strive to teach their children. With the coronavirus pandemic, now is the perfect time to sit down and refine these skills. Try it out, and watch your child flourish.
