by Tina Hartley

Created on: November 13, 2008   Last Updated: April 14, 2010

You have been teaching your toddler about responsibility from the first day he came home from the hospital. Our children first learn from watching us. As they grow and interact more with their world, learning increases. A toddler is a sponge. Whether you are actively teaching at the moment or not; they are learning from us during every waking moment.

Do you have your child pick up his toys every day when play time is over? If you do, you are teaching responsibility. Even if you are helping, you are establishing a behavior. If your child causes a spill, let him help you clean it up. Even allowing a tiny tot to tag along while an older sibling feeds a pet has a positive effect. What better way to start learning than by watching responsibility in action.

The quality times spent with a toddler during normal household routines have an immeasurable effect. Slowing down your pace to allow them to keep up may seem like an annoyance at times, but the benefits far outweigh the slight inconvenience. The benefits can extend to you, also. Slowing your pace allows you to see and appreciate the little things you might have missed.

Let yourself be brought into the world of a toddler. All things are bright and beautiful and fascinating. Those same chores you normally go through as quickly as possible can become fun! Now you are causing an association to form; responsibilities can be pleasurable.

Staying in the same vein; don't neglect the praise. Being rewarded with a smile and a simple "Good job!" can give a sense of pride and accomplishment to an adult. It is even more important to a child. Not all responsibilities can be fun. Even those dreaded chores can have a good association when they come with praise.

Take care not to teach your child to be irresponsible. Don't clean up everything for them. Don't quickly fix or replace every broken toy. Part of learning to be responsible is understanding there are consequences to actions. A toddler may not be able to understand the theory, but they can learn someone else will not always take care of it for them.

As we go through our daily responsibilities there's a small set of eyes watching every move we make. A toddler can do much more than watch, if you let them. Involve your child. It doesn't take special lesson planning or repeated reminders to "Do your chores" when they are 10 years old. You can teach your toddler responsibility by letting him or her be responsible as part of a normal day.

Make being responsible part of everyday life. Have responsibilities associated with pleasurable experiences. There are no guarantees your child will be the very model of responsibility, but you can feel secure in the knowledge you helped them to build a solid foundation for the future.

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