The world is full of different beliefs and religions that your kids are likely to encounter at some stage in their lives. They might make friends with someone from a different religion or watch a film that is inspired by a religious story. As a parent, it is up to you to teach your children about other religions and how to respect them. There are no right or wrong ways to teach your kids about other religions, as long as it is a positive experience. Use these three ways to help your children learn more about religion and become more accepting as they get older.
Discuss your family’s beliefs
Before you start to learn about other religions, it’s important that your child grasps their own religion. Try not to overwhelm them with too much information all at once. Religion is an intensely complex subject and a lot of it young children will struggle to understand fully.
Stick to the stories and traditions that they understand or are familiar with. Things such as the ten commandments may be overwhelming for a young child so it might be wise to tackle one at a time. You could use story books, drawings or films to help you get your point across and encourage them to ask questions. Ask them why they think you do certain things each day such as praying. They might not know the reasons behind it, so this is an ideal opportunity for you to explain it to them. Also, explain about how other people believe different things and how not everyone believes in the same thing your family does.
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Research together
It might be that you don’t know a great deal about other religions either, so why not research them together. You could do it over the summer holidays or on a weekend and learn about different religious practices from all over the world. The internet is full of kid friendly sites that explain in simple terms how religion is practiced. You could also visit religious and historical places in your local area or when you go on holiday. Reading some children’s stories from other religions might also provide you with some insight into why they do certain things. You might have a friend from another religion who can come and talk to you both about holidays they celebrate. You may even get invited to join in with their customs and traditions. It’s up to you to decide whether you feel comfortable with this or not.
Other Practices
It’s also important for you to teach your children about atheism and people who don’t recognize religious practices. You can use websites such as Deily Atheism to help you explain what atheism is and why some people may not believe in God. Also, explain that they have a choice when it comes to religion, and they can be as religious as they like as they get older.
These tips should help you and your children be more respectful and interested in other religions. Even though you may not agree with other people’s religious views, it’s good for you both to have some knowledge and understanding.
Jess says
I don’t have kids yet, but it definitely is important to think about these things and how to teach kids to be understanding of things they maybe don’t believe in themselves. Great tips! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Dana says
Thanks Jess! In this day and age I agree with you 100% that we need to teach kids to be understanding of everyone’s religion and respect as well!
Nicole says
I love this! My husband and I have very different beliefs. We decided that we would raise them in my religion with the stipulation that we would teach them about many different beliefs. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this!
Dana says
I am so glad that you love this Nicole! My parents were brought up with two different religions, but made it a priority for my sister and I to learn both religions as well as others and to respect them all equally as well. 🙂
Jenn says
I really like this post! I know it’s important to me as a mom to reflect my religion to my son as much as possible (though he’s still young!). But I agree – it is so important to teach kids to be respectful of everyone’s beliefs, not attack them just because they’re different. Great tips!
Dana says
Thanks Jenn! Respect, to me, is the most important.
Kristin Cook says
I definitely think it is important to educate kids about other beliefs. I want them to be able to stand firm in their faith and not be shell shocked one day because they didn’t know other people thought differently.
Dana says
Exactly Kristin! So important!
Shann Eva says
This is great! We don’t practice a formal religion in our household, but I want to make sure my kids know about all kinds of religions, so that they can make their own choice of what to believe. Great resources!
Dana says
Thank you Shann! We don’t practice formally either. My mom is Jewish and my dad is Catholic. I was taught from a very young age about each of the religions and to respect all beliefs. 🙂
Homegrown Adventures says
Loved this post. We have four children and a relationship with God is so important for us. It is like being able to breath. We think of it more as a relationship than a religion. I agree that our children should know about different religions. My sister lives near a young boy my sons age (13 years old) who is Hindu. And I love the discussions my son and this boy has. Respectful discussions even though both believe strongly in their own faith.
Dana says
Thank you! I love how you describe your relationship with God – it is so refreshing! Respect is the buzz word when it comes to differences!
Amanda Rinehart says
I love this idea! Oh what a wonderful place the world will become with the next generation if we all teach our children that different religions are to be respected and not used a means of prejudice or as a vehicle for war. Truly important topic.
Dana says
Yes – you hit the nail on the head Amanda. Starting to teach and understand at a young age can help to combat the prejudice.
Kylie says
I definitely think sharing this information with kids is crucial to them understanding their own belief system. If they only ever know one thing they may eventually end up not understanding why they beleive it. Love this!
Dana says
So true Kylie, teaching them about the different religions out there could very well make them understand even more about their own!
Lana @ The Joy Blog says
I love this because I was raised in a very tight religious community and often found myself looking at everyone else as “them”. I think it’s so important to teach kids that we all have our own faiths.
Dana says
I completely agree Lana 🙂
Lauren English says
I love that you’re emphasizing teaching your kids open-mindedness. Even though my husband and I have clear religious beliefs we want to teach our children, we also think it’s incredibly valuable for them to understand, value, and love people who believe different things than them. This is great!
Dana says
I completely agree with you Lauren and thank you for stopping by!
Jasmine says
Love that you wrote on this topic. Im not overly religious but I do try and raise my kids to be open minded and never ever to judge. I want them to grow up and be able to learn from others and not just believe in something simply because I said they should.
Dana says
Thanks Jasmine. I think the best service you can do for your children is to do as you are – raise them openminded and nonjudgemental.
Yaya says
Coming from a very religious family, I appreciate this post. I think its important for parents to have an open dialogue about other religions and be willing to research other beliefs if their children have questions.
Dana says
Exactly Yaya!
Susannah says
This is wonderful! My husband and I are Christian and we pray that our son chooses to follow our faith but we are definitely going to be sharing all different views with him so he can make an informed decision.
Dana says
Thanks Susannah! I think it is wonderful that you will share the different views with your son 🙂