"Cognitive Development" by Cindy Scott

It’s kind of a brainiac title I know, but something I am kind of passionate about. In child development there are several types of parental approaches to help your child’s thought processes grow. One is to impose your values on them by making them believe what you believe and on the converse side of that (and even more devastating) is to not really care at all about their values and let them figure that out on their own.

In the middle is a place where the parents craft powerful questions that help the child to
develop their own belief system that will not be swayed by opposing world views. You
see if a parent imposes their values, the child often goes through a time when they reach
a certain age where they question those beliefs, however if a child chooses to believe
what the parent believes then it becomes their own and is more likely to stand the tests to
come.

So, how can you help your child chose wisely? Ask questions like these:
“So, do you believe in God?” “Why?”
“What do you think you could say to people who don’t believe that is true?”
“Why do you think God gave us choices?”
“How do wise people make choices?”
“What kinds of things do you think you are going to have to choose in your life?”
“What happens if you make a bad choice?”
Etc.

It can be very difficult to start to “release the reigns” so to speak but if you do it at an early age you will find them asking you questions in return about how you make your choices. You can stimulate their thinking about options before those options are even on the table. Have fun thinking of powerful questions and have fun dialoguing with your children!