Our children must have a strong sense of identity. This is because it plays a significant role in their emotional and intellectual growth, helping them to understand themselves and the world they live in. Having a clear sense of identity enables them to establish a framework of values and moral standards, which, in turn, assists them in developing communication skills and building independent and successful personalities for their future.
However, in today’s age of technology and the Internet, teaching our children their identity has become more complicated due to globalization and the intersection of different cultures and values. Here are several tips to help your child strengthen his identity and culture:
- Speak your language at home. Avoid speaking in a language other than your mother tongue while conversing with your child at home. To ensure that your child comprehends everything, try to explain each word in a simple manner using the same language.
- Introduce your child to traditional food and make them appreciate and enjoy the traditional food of their country. While there’s nothing wrong with introducing foreign foods to your child, it’s essential to instill a sense of pride and respect for their cultural heritage.
- Share your country’s culture with your child: traditional music, historical stories, celebrations.
- Allow your children to learn about their civilization by visiting museums and landmarks, watching documentaries, or even talking to them about it.
- Enhance their sense of pride in their own identity and culture, and teach them that they are special because of it. At the same time, teach them to respect other cultures, recognizing that our differences are what make us unique.
- If you live outside of your home country, try to surround your child with people who belong to the same culture. This can be done by meeting relatives or friends, as belonging to a group gives a sense of strength and stability.
- Helping your child strengthen and consolidate their identity is not an easy task, but it is possible with continuous effort.
Reference for the featured image:
https://www.essentiafoundation.org/re-thinking-identity-childrens-experiences-of-self/reading/
