am i doing the right thing

[oldgrape]

most of u on here have heard about my son (harrison) aka baby grape

right was on the bus today and baby grape wanted one of his toys and i wouldn't give it to him til he said please (only took him like 30 secs and he said please.

an elderly lady sitting behind me said she thought i was being far too strict as he was far too young to know the meaning of the word and gave me a bl00dy lecture about bringin up kids

is teaching kids manners now days wrong i mean surely there is no right age for them to learn !!!

[paddywak]

I agree with you oldgrape it's never to early to be teaching politeness and good manners, keep up the good work

[golly53]

Keep up the good work of teaching little un manners - they never lose them and they are a real asset

[puddicat]

good on you oldgrape so many little monsters out there with parents that dont bother with manners, believe me it will see him well in the future!!!

[Jugglering]

Sounds to me like you know precisely what is required for the future good manners of this society... so keep up the good work OG !

[cassa333]

I agree completely with the other posters.

Even if he dosen't know what the word please means he knows that it is the right thing to say and builds on his knowledge of how the world works.

Silly old lady I say.

[lozzylou]

you are doing the right thing. my boys are 2 and 3 and dont get nothing unless they say please or thankyou. manners are free.
you can never win with (some of ) the older people. if you use manners you are being to strict and if you dont teach them manners then you are a bad parent.
stick with it my boys were taught it from the minute they could start talking. at 12 month old they were saying ta then as they were older they started saying thankyou

[naflharrison]

totally agree with you about this one, as far as im concerned as soon as a child can say the words please or thankyou etc they should be taught to say it. i had a situation like you when my daughter was about 18mths, she wanted something probably a biscuit etc and i wouldnt let her takeit until she said please(took a few atempts!) well the person who gave me the rolocking was my own mother!! all i got was that she was only a baby and i shouldnt ' force' her to say please. caused an almighty row and didnt help that i was pregnant and hormonal. its cos she is too soft and still i have to barge my own mother to discipline my kids if they are naughty as she will let them get away with it and talk baby talk gibberish to them! effectively we are now having to take our daughter to speach therapy as at the age of five she still says tar instead of car etc, this being down to again my mother who continued to talk baby talk to her even tho we asked her to speak properly to her so she would learn her words!! thanks mum!! anyway sounds like your a great mum who knows the values of good manners, its great to hear you kids say please and thankyou etc without having to be prompted!

[Hellyon]

Your'e absolutely right oldgrape. I'm not sure why some elderly people feel they have to pass comment on our child rearing skills, I managed an old sheltered hosuing scheme when I had my son and they took that as carte blanche to tell me everything I was doing wrong!!
My husband is teaching my 10 year old old fashioned politeness and manners at the moment, holding a door open for ladies, offering seats, carrying heavy bags, walking on the outside, he might want be a cool kid but he's darn well going to be a gentleman too!