Question: What is the best to teach my child to make New Year’s resolutions?

My 9-year-old son is a very inquisitive and interesting fellow. The other day he asked to explain what a New Year’s resolution is. I explained to him what it is and would like him to have it as a habit. How do I go about training him to always make resolutions? David, JabanaAnswerDear David, you must be blessed to have an inquisitive son. Learning best happens when one has a mind thirsty for knowledge and I can already see that in your son. Making resolutions at the beginning of each year is a good practice even though many may not stick to them till the end. Resolutions are simply targets and targets come with evaluations. To train your child to understand what resolutions are about, you need to first ask him to list what he thinks were the good things that happened in the previous year. After evaluating his previous year, he will be in a better position to think of the areas that need improvement or exploration. You can in other words follow up by asking him what he wishes 2014 to be like. He may come up with a list of numerous desirables but you can ask him to narrow it by asking him to explain the importance of each item on his list. Once he has made up his mind on the major thing or things he wishes to pursue and see in 2014, get Manila paper and write it down in bold characters then place it in his room or somewhere he can see it regularly. Ask him also how he plans to achieve that set target. All this is best if you lead by example.