The Ranch recently held a contest to see what the children thought about respect and responsibility. They were asked to write a short essay on how they can teach both. Colten from Faith Hall won the contest; here are his ideas on teaching respect and responsibility:
Idea One: When I was at my other program, I learned how to respect the people that I trusted. If you allow the person to get to know you,
then you will allow them to slowly gain respect for you. But you have to be willing to show them respect in turn.
Idea Two: My view on respect is that you cannot teach a person how to respect others, but you can teach them the tools to be respectful. You can give them the tools that will give them the choice to be respectful or not to be. I say you cannot teach people how to respect others because that is their choice – not yours.
Idea Three: Respect is a necessity that is not something that comes naturally to people. You have to teach yourself to respect the person when you are with even if you do not enjoy their company. This is like a job. If you have the job you have always wanted, but your boss is a jerk, then if you say disrespectful things to him, you will be fired. But, say mentally you disrespect him, that is your choice. On the outside though, you need to respect everybody. These problems are very serious, and they don’t just disappear.