Wet Cement

by Laura Parker

I had a friend in college once who said, "Kids are like wet cement. As parents, we get to put our fingerprints all over them and shape them. But the older they become, the drier --and harder to form--the cement grows."

Psychologist Sigmund Freud agreed. He believed that a child's basic character is developed by the age of five. I don't know about you, but that philosophy makes me a bit nervous for my preschoolers. With that in mind, we have practiced the following ideas to develop positive character in fun ways that easily fit into the fabric of our daily life.

• Marble Jar: Set up an empty jar with a bowl of marbles beside it. Choose a quality that you want to positively reward for the week and explain to your kids that every time you "catch" someone displaying that quality, they get to add two marbles to the jar. When the jar is full, the whole family gets a special treat.
• Build a Tower: Set up some blocks on the kitchen counter in a pile (Large Legos work fantastically). Talk about how the words we speak can either build up or tear down other people. During the day, for every encouraging word spoken, have the speaker add a block to the tower.
• Fridge Art: Put a big piece of white butcher paper on an empty side of your refrigerator. Choose a quality that you would like to work on that week in your home. Tape some markers beside the paper and challenge your kids to notice when someone in the family displays that character trait. Have them draw pictures of the positive actions performed on the paper to create a collage.
• Fruit that Lasts: Place a large bowl of fruit on the table one morning. Talk about the fruits of right living found in the Bible (Galatians 5:22-23). The fruits in this passage are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control. Have each child create a pretend story about someone who showed one of the positive fruits, then let him/her choose a fruit from the bowl to enjoy after breakfast.
• Actions Speak Louder than Words: As someone once said, "Be the type of person you want your children to become."

So, you mothers of "wet cement" children, persevere. Keep shaping the clay of your children's hearts with intention and passion and consistency, because every day the cement is getting a little bit drier.

Taken from MOPS.org