Although parents can’t control the decisions their children ultimately make in life, they can equip children to have healthy ambition. April 14 is National Reach as High as You Can Day. This can mean different things for different people. “Highest reach” in a Guinness search gives at least 322 results. Reach as High as You Can Day can mean to reach toward the sky or reach for your dreams.

Many parents can relate to this idea of reach. One of their goals in raising a person from the time they are a newborn is to instill a desire to reach for what’s important in life. The following are tips for parents to put a desire in their children to reach high. They are based on things the scientific community says successful kids have in common.

Require Kids to Take Responsibility

Children should do chores, complete their own school projects, and do their own homework. The simple practice of having your children clean the kitchen regularly, put away their dishes, and make their bed is like a class in How to Raise an Adult 101. It’s essential for children to understand that work is a vital part of life, beginning with home and school. Kids raised doing chores become employees who are equipped to take on independent tasks and collaborate well with peers.

Teach Children Social Skills

Less than desirable outcomes are associated with children who grow up with limited social skills--binge drinking and arrest records, to name two. Success as an adult is strongly associated with social skills. A 20-year study of 700 children found that kids who exhibited healthy social skills in kindergarten were far more likely to have a full-time job by age 25 and to earn a college degree than children who struggled in social settings. Behaviors linked to good social skills in kids include cooperation and problem-solving with peers, exhibiting empathy, and being helpful to others.

Pursue Education

Studies show that the level of education a parent has reached by the time a child is 8 significantly predicts the child’s career and education levels decades later. The higher the maternal level of education, the higher the achievement levels of children from kindergarten through eighth grade. The following point, however, shows that education isn’t everything.

Establish a Healthy Relationship with Your Kids

When children are raised with sensitivity and caring, they end up testing better academically than children whose parents did not have similar parenting styles. The healthier the relationships in the home, the greater the academic achievement of the child. Apparently, parents having an education isn’t a must. Balanced, loving parenting may go further in preparing a child to reach high.

Express High Expectations—aka Nag!

There is no way to exaggerate the importance of parents letting their children know they have high expectations for them. This factor has an enormous effect on attainment in life. It’s essential to manage a child toward the goal of college, no matter the income level or lack of assets. In standardized testing, 96% of the children who did well were expected to go to college, according to one research study. Conversely, the 57% of the children who tested the worst had parents who did not expect them to attend college. In short, children live up to their parents’ expectations.

Have a Happy National Reach as High as You Can Day!

There are some days when parents are literally struggling to survive, especially when going through the newborn stage. In spite of everything parents go through, most truly want their kids to have a “reach as high as you can” life. Just having a heart to do that will probably be enough since the mouth speaks what’s in the heart.

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