How to Teach Kids Priorities

Share your point of view.

Teaching your child how to prioritize is a life skill that will help them organize things that needs to be done in a way which ensures that the most important things are on top of the list. Identifying top priorities is not easy and a clear description of your goals and aims are necessary. A child prioritizes every day. Yet, often this prioritizing is carried out in an informal way where their perceptions of the situation are not taken into account.

Instructions

1. Talk about the difference between acting and planning before you act. Setting your priorities is a conscious decision and writing down your decisions helps to see the options more clearly. The first thought is not always the best or only option.

2. Look at different everyday situations together. The way you see a situation influences your priorities. Talk about how you would set your priorities. Tell them what factors you would consider.

3. Learn from others. Look at situations from different people's perspectives. This helps them to explore the situation from different angles and makes it easier for them to decide what they want to do. Understanding that other peoples' views may differ is vital for setting your own priorities. Talk about how other people decide what their priorities are.

4. Discuss characters in books and film. Ask your child to list priorities that other children in books and films have to make. Talk about what you would have done in a similar situation.

5. List priorities. Help younger children by writing their list of different options. Practice writing lists in simple situations and gradually choose situations that are more complex.

6. List positive and negative aspects. Tell them to decide the priority between different choices by describing the positive and negative aspects with each decision.

7. Identify the top priority. Use the list to identify the top priority and explore the positive and negative aspect with the priority. Deliberate attention to what is most important and helps them to decide the other priorities.

8. List ways in which they can reach that priority. Sometimes the top priority may change when you list how you can reach the goals. Instead the priority may become a part of a long-term goal.

9. Realize the priority. Help them to realize the priority. This means to be committed to the project and making an effort. Seeing that it is possible to realize the priorities makes them more prone to write lists and explore situations in the future.

Tips & Warnings

• It takes time and patience to teach a child priorities. A calm approach where you reward behavior is way to encourage your child to explore different options.

References

• Pediatric Clinic; Life Priorities; 2011