These are words of the quintessential modern genius, none other than Albert Einstein. Very rightly so, fairy tales and stories tend to accelerate the growth of the human mind in infancy and early years. They fuel the imagination of children and make them believe in the extraordinary feat the human mind is capable of achieving.

Another similar quote around fairy tales is one of Neil Gaiman– “Fairy tales are more than true not because they tell us that dragons exist but because they tell us that dragons can be defeated.”

So, here’s a list of 10 fairy tales/stories that your child needs to have in his/ her collection.

1. Jungle Book – This book is a truckload of adventures and inventions and is an apt choice to spark and fuel the imagination of your kid. Written by Rudyard Kipling it’s a story of a boy called Mowgli raised by wolves in the woods and his fight with the king of the jungle tiger Sher Khan.

2. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Listed in one to the greatest books to have and penned by Mark Twain, the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is the story of a rebel and runaway slave who seeks liberation.

   The Lie Tree– Awarded as the winner of overall Cost book Awards recently, it’s a true original and the lead female character of this book could be an apt role model for children while the book a great addition to their collection.

4. Toms Midnight Garden – Written by Philippa Pearce, it’s a story about a kid who goes to stay with his uncle and aunt, but things take a different turn as the clock strikes 13. He finds himself in a little garden with a little girl who comes from a different time zone. This book is sure to leave an impression of a lifetime and is considered to be one of the finest works of children’s literature.

5. Matilda by Roal Dahl – Though there are many books by Roald Dahl which need to be in the must-read list, Matilda is one of the more special ones, for the imaginative capabilities are on full throttle in this emotionally compelling and overwhelming story of a little girl and her struggle for love and escape.

There are umpteen books that your children should read before teenage and the above are just a few of them. Have you made reading a habit for your little ones yet!

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It’s time to Discipline – Off-course, you don’t have to be rude in your way to tell them. Rather than pointing out some chore they haven’t finished, tell them that they would get a chance to play outdoor as soon as they finish their chore. Now, there’s an option for your child to choose from.

Don’t Ignore – Many parents simply take everything their children do easy. They feel that with age they will themselves learn to behave well. But, parents need to

One Warning always – Always warn before taking any strict action about an issue. For example if your child is not letting you work on your laptop, warn the child that if he/she don’t allow you to work then they will get a time out. You have to do it only once and not keep repeating that because if you keep repeating and don’t take action after a warning, it would be like fuel the fire.

Instant Actions – Immediate actions are important so that children take whatever you say seriously enough. If the behavior is worth a punishment, give it immediately. This could either be a time out of a few hours of no outdoor activity for a day or two or something else. For example if you kid is calling you names or talking with you rudely, then you need to make them understand that such behavior is unacceptable and they will have to pay for it, by depriving them of their favorite privilege for some time.

Restitution – In order to avoid some disrespectful behavior of your child yet again, restitution could be one of the way out. If you child for example behaves disrespectfully with someone, doing some kind gesture to the victim in order to repair the damage already done and avoid reoccurrence is what restitution is all about.

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So, the question arises – is there a way out of all this?

Yes, there is a way out, but, primarily it is the parent who as the first role model for a kid, needs to display kindness,  for them to observe and pick it up.

If we go by statistics, a survey of 10000 students in the age group of middle school and high-school in the USA reveals 80% parents teach their children to concentrate on high achievements and personal happiness above kindness and caring. Off-course, the statistics throw light on the current state of mind of teenagers as well. But, the good news is that things can be brought under control. If you want your kids to turn out to be kind and caring as kids as well as adults, here are some techniques coming to your help straight from Harvard.

Be a Role Model – Even if you are not a perfect parent, you can always be a role model for your kids. If you show kindness to others, your kids will automatically inculcate it. So be kind yourself before teaching them to do so.

Practicing is the Key – Nobody is born kind or perfect, right? It’s you as a parent who needs to instill it by way of practice. Try and give opportunities to your kids to practice acts of kindness like sharing their old toys to poor orphans, taking a juniors homework, to name a few.

Feelings Managment – As a parent you need to tell your kids that getting angry, feel anxious or jealous is quite normal in human beings. Further, you need to help them manage these destructive feelings efficiently,  based on their individual personalities. If needed you may seek the help of psychologists in school or outside.

Two Vital Skills – The two vital skills that will help your kids build a wider circle of concern are zoom in and zoom out. Zoom in is about concentrating when others are talking viz. listening to them. While zoom out is looking at the bigger picture and learning to put human experience in that context.

Blame Game – Many parents, try finding faults in their kids and are not ready to introspect themselves around what sort of messages are they actually passing on to their kids. It’s a good idea to question your own behavior and ways first, rather than pointing fingers at your child.

It is not a cake walk definitely, to make your kids understand and instill the behavior of kindness in them, but if you try with full zeal it is quite an achievable feat.