An Important Word to Educators in the United States

From Family Therapist and Mental Health Expert Gregory S. Smith, MS, MSW, LISW-CPS

As someone who works with troubled families day in and day out, I will tell you there are 3 sets of values which are vital to build in children.

They are:

• honesty and integrity
• respect for self and others (others = peers + adults)
• personal responsibility and personal initiative

Without these 3 foundational character traits, the individual will suffer throughout their life, and in every part of their life:

• their physical health and safety;
• their work and their finances;
• their mental and emotional health; and
• in all their interpersonal relationships.

As Educators, we can’t control what the parents do or fail to do – but we can control what we permit or allow in our classroom.

It is imperative that the 3 sets of values listed above be held as non-negotiable behavioral standards – with clear expectations they be adhered to, and firm consequences for non-compliance.

Greg Smith is the director of a psychotherapy practice in Greenville, South Carolina specializing in child, adolescent, and adult psychological issues and family relationship issues. Greg has been working in the mental health field since 1982, has two Masters degrees in counseling-related fields, and is licensed as an Independent Clinical Practice Supervisor.

For more information about Greg’s practice, go to www.gregorysmithcounseling.com