Original published in the June 2016 issue of South Florida Parenting Magazine.
As a parent, we provide our children with unconditional love and acceptance. Acceptance begins at home! Parents are the most influential persons in a childs life and this is a core value we cannot leave unchecked and a value that shapes who they are.
We are all uniquely made, not one of us alike, yet we live in a very diverse world. Educating our children on this diversity and accepting themselves and others regardless of there differences, may be a difficult task to take on, but Only if you let it be.
Our diverse society can be a challenge to many who are not open to accepting changes or differences. But we the parent set that example at home. Our communities are filled with socioeconomic differences, and how we, the parent speak and reflect about our surroundings will determine our children’s acceptance, respect and tolerance of the world around them.
By encouraging an open coversation with your children in respect to differences among people whether it be racial or religious, gender or disabled we are all capable of achieving many of the same things in life. But that attitude of acceptance, respect and tolerance has to be the behavior we the parent have to model first at home. Children watch closely and often imitate what the parent does, if we don’t do our job as the parent, society will teach them otherwise.
Being kind and compassionate are traits that go hand in hand with acceptance and tolerance. It’s the ability to accept each others differences, will only build their social competence. If we adults showed more respect and concern for others and accepted each other’s differences our world would most likely be a different place.
