Mom gets revved up when her son asks: "What, mommy?"
It's okay, mommy, it's not just British children who respond this way...
Teaching our kids about respect can be tricky. Not so much because they are unteachable, but because sometimes kids' quick minds match their swift tongues.
A South African mother, who often shares her journey of motherhood raising her British children on social media, produces content that is relatable.
Raising her kids in the same way she was is challenging because they aren't in South Africa but in England. However, one of her recent videos made us realise that we can all resonate with the idea of teaching respect.
Teaching your kids respect is one of the most tricky things about parenting. How do we instil good values in them when exposed to so much?
It takes consistency and a commitment to learning how to communicate with our little ones.
We can confidently say that we knew our kids would ask lots of questions as they grew. We even expected the infamous 'Why?', but we didn't quite expect them to say 'What' as often as they do.
Watch the video below - courtesy of TikTok.
@basicmomsa IT'S THE WHAT!!! That sets me all the way off 😐 eventually these kids will learn #expat #momsoftiktok #africanmom ♬ original sound - basic mom
READ MORE: Mom asks daughter where her manners are...
From what we know, when we hear our kids respond with the word 'what' we immediately deem it disrespectful. However, for them, it is not disrespect but their way of processing what you are asking them.
So, in this case, it was how the mother approached the conversation. Her son was busy playing, so he wasn't listening attentively when she interrupted him. Therefore, he responded by saying, "What?"
Then mommy said, "Excuse me?" This further confused the little boy. All in all, we think mom is doing a great job with her kids. Sometimes, we won't get it right the first time or the second time or even the 100th time, but staying consistent with kids will eventually teach them.
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Image Courtesy of TikTok