It is very common for things to change as a child grows older. Their hobbies, interest, taste in fashion and music is likely to change as well. As parents, it is normal to have expectations for your child. You want them to finish basic school in good grades, attend high school and graduate from the university in flying colours. In the end, they get a good job, be happy and start their own family.
While all of these are good intentions, did you know that children also have their own expectations? Sadly enough, we live in a time where the voice of a child is covered by the expectations from family, school and the society in general. It’s now more of what they can do and little of what they want.
As a parent, the first thing you need to understand is that a child is equally an emotional being and that they have feelings. They want to be loved, cared for and given the attention that they need. So, the big question is how do you manage their expectations?
Before we can answer this, it important to understand what these expectations are. Below are some of the most common expectations of a child:
- Your time: Every child wants to feel important and one way to show this is by devoting your time to them, no matter how busy you may get.
- Shared interest: A child wants to feel that their parents understand them and that they share things in common. So, it can be that book you read together or TV program you watch.
- Independence: Today more than ever, a child wants to feel independent. In this modern era, children can easily access information and with this information, they feel they are independent enough to make informed decisions. As a parent, making them feel incapable of making right decisions makes them feel worthless and can leave them second-guessing the decisions they make in life.
Now that you understand the expectations that children have and what these expectations are, we believe that you can better relate with them and enhance your relationship with them.
If you have any questions on this, please feel free to leave in the comment box.