Being a father is one of the most important roles you can fulfill in your life. Teaching your children, the values of challenging work, honesty, respect and integrity go a long way to helping them live a happy, satisfied life. No matter what direction in life they take, no matter what career they choose, if they keep those qualities close to them, and wear them like armor, they’ll be good people. It’s your job to give them the lessons that will help them learn this. You needn’t stick to lectures about the value of these though, in fact, a more reliable way to instill them in your child is to show them, through a range of outdoor activities that some might initially consider challenging.
Furthermore, having an excuse to get your child out the house and doing something, no matter what is generally advantageous to their development as a human being. To best prepare them for the beauty their life is capable of, consider taking them on the following activities. Any excuse to spend time with your children is a good one, particularly if you have a demanding job.
Camping
Camping is one of the best activities you can take your child on, as it teaches several valuable skills. Building a tent and feeling comfortable sleeping outside is one, but so is getting used to less-than-comfortable positions outside the child’s bedroom. This is also an exciting time for you to find out more about your child, what they enjoy, how they’re finding school etc. Take the time here to teach them how to build a campfire, how to cook and eat while outdoors, and how to safely organize their belongings.
You needn’t go into the wilderness to camp and make the most out of nature, as there are numerous camping sites that function as ‘getaway parks,’ instead of holiday destinations. This will increase the feeling of being in nature, without potential interference from dangerous wildlife or people, depending on your location.
Fishing
Fishing is a brilliant pastime to teach children because it teaches a respect for life, a respect for the value of patience, and self-sustenance. Whether you plan to eat the fish is your decision, but teaching your child about the types of fish to be found in your locale will spark their curiosity and help you bond. Buoy 10 Salmon fishing is fun and could be the perfect first fishing activity you take on together.
Hiking
Hiking can teach your child reverence for nature, and gets them out and exercising! It’s true that the best, reflective thoughts come when walking, especially in nature, so be sure to have periods of quiet time while you acclimate to the landscape you’re traversing. Hiking can also help a child’s creativity be stimulated, as the wonders of nature are hard to feel uninspired around.
It also helps lessen the burden of their stressors. Whether they’re just about to start high school, college, or some other difficult pursuit, it’s good to have relaxing down time from which you can observe your challenges in another life. Following the course of your life can be so automatic that it’s sometimes difficult to take an external stance and see how you’re really doing. Teaching your child that it’s okay to take a little space sometimes is a healthy lesson to bestow.
Crafting
Teaching hands-on craftwork is great for your child’s development. Even if they’re not particularly interested in woodwork or manipulation of practical resistant materials, they can learn something from it. Proceed with a small project for example, a block of wood, and show them how to responsibly use hand tools to carve out what they’d like.
This will give them the opportunity to learn precision, temperance, challenging work and the accomplishments to be made when an effort is made towards something. In fact, if they don’t initially take to it, this can be a positive thing. Often in life, we must undertake tasks we don’t particularly enjoy doing for our survival and benefit. Helping to instill this lesson gently now will hopefully lessen their errors teaching them brutally in the future. Being a great father is much more than just teaching life lessons and while providing a strong presence is of paramount importance, it’s also good to teach them the values of compassion, gentleness, and fairness.
Don’t expect your child to be on your level, they have years less experience than you. Instead, show them the template of correct behavior, and allow them to define what that means and how to employ it for themselves. Also, as always with children, you must remember to be patient. Even if none of these life lessons are followed in future, you’ll at least have memories of the incredible outings your pursuit with them.
