by Pat Lamb (Author of: Let the Children Come: Children, Come to Me; When the Stars Fall Down; Widening the Church Doors to Teach the Narrow Way; My Thinking Book; Love is…)available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, www.patlambchristianauthor.com

Helping Children Become Good Citizens

Teachers in school simply cannot teach children all they need to become good citizens.  Not only do they not have the time to do so, but truthfully, no teacher can remain totally neutral in teaching children.  Eventually, personal opinions will show through in selection of material taught, tone of voice, facial expressions, and many other ways.  It is truly up to parents to teach their children when it comes to matters of patriotism and our country.

How can parents effectively teach citizenship?  First of all, good citizenship must be practiced by the parents.  Parents need to teach their children how our constitution came to be and even how our country was founded.  Finally, parents need to point out the propaganda that would destroy our country.

It is so easy for parents to say the wrong things in front of children.  Learning is often caught rather than taught.  The tone of voice parents use and comments such as “politicians are all crooks” must be guarded.  After all, if parents think government officials are crooks, why should children honor the laws they make?  On the other hand, if parents respect the law, children will be inclined to do so as well.

Unfortunately, it seems that much of our country’s true history is not being taught in many of our schools.  There is much information available in local libraries and the Internet that parents can use to make sure children get accurate information.  It is often difficult to sift out truth from opinion, but the ability to do so will be needed by children throughout their entire lives.  It is easy to get swept up in emotion and overlook facts. School teachers are human.  They can get swept up in emotion as easily as anyone else— often with good intentions.  

Of course, children will make up their own minds as they grow into adulthood.  Parents, however, need to make sure they have facts, set a good example, and help children discern the difference between truth and opinion.