Good Manners and Right Conduct – lessons learned from Kindergarten. I distinctly remember that GMRC (as it was called then) was one of the major subjects we learned in grade school. I was in a public school during my elementary years and in every corner of the room, you will see such slogans or shall I say, quotations which still hold true in our lives.
Honesty is the best policy.
Don’t talk when your mouth is full.
Simplicity is beauty.
And the golden rule tops it all. You don’t need to read Emily Post to observe courtesy and simple rules, right? Robert Fulghum has summarized everything is his book, All I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.
Growing up in a household where kissing the hands of the elders is a rule and saying prayers before meals is a must, one learns that simple common courtesy, being tactful and polite, being humble and patient somehow make a big difference from being called a brat to being called a well-brought up individual. They say that during the first seven years of a child’s life, his brain is like a sponge. If you haven’t instilled the values you want your child to learn by then, teaching him to be more responsive would be hard later on. It does reflect on the parents what manners you have taught your children and believe me, they will carry it through their adult lives.
Attracting attention to yourself in public….talking loudly, conspicuous clothes, staring at people….How important is keeping good manners and right conduct alive? It’s true, you become more credible when you are in touch with your manners.
Dreams And Escapes 
Wow, you are really very young, younger than me because I couldn’t remember that was how it was called. GMRC? Although my friend who’s a year older than me remembers. Maybe I was not listening in class. But you are so right, GMRC is pretty much needed in our schools right now, especially that parents have let tv baby sit for them.
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Hehehe…baka lang nakalimutan mo Lou na may subject na ganun! Discipline should be our responsibility, yung iba kasi kahit sa katulong inaasa ang pagtuturo sa mga bata, minsan mali naman.
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back to the basics…by the way, Fulghum is one of my favourite writers…i think i have 3 or 4 of his books…i like the way he writes.
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I love Fulghum too, like you I have about four books of him on my shelf. I have It Was On Fire When I Lay Down On It, From Beginning to End, Uh-oh and that first book I had of him, All I Really Need to Know I learned In Kindergarten.
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Well…my manners are pretty decent (I think) but I may fall short on the “conspicuous clothes” and “staring at people” thing. Nothing I love more than a fresh closet full of conspicuous clothes and people watching (aka staring!).
So let’s just say, I’m a well-mannered, conspicuously dressed, people-watcher! 🙂
xjennifer
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thanks Jennifer for your comments here 🙂
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Essential phase in moulding a child’s character. These lessons should be reinforced by parents at home.
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