Etiquette School For Children

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An etiquette school for children specializes in teaching a specific set of social skills to children. You can find an etiquette school in nearly every part of the country. Their lessons vary, but eventually, there is convergence between all of them.

The best etiquette schools are capable of training even the youngest children in the proper way of behaving when in the presence of other people. The main advantage of such schools is that they provide an authority figure to the children. This is a well-known phenomenon – children are actually more receptive to authority figures outside their home.When you enroll your child in such a school, expect that there are group classes and one-on-one coaching. The power of the lessons is often developed during the one-on-one coaching, where children are motivated to practice proper etiquette because it matters.

We believe that these schools are important because really, good manners are not hardwired into a human’s brain. They must be learned, remembered, applied and constantly enforced.

What does an etiquette school offer? Usually, the school divides the lessons into distinct phases. The first phase usually involves a discussion of why proper etiquette must be learned.

Children are given a variety of situations and the coaches ask questions about what the best behaviors could be in such situations. To encourage openness, role-playing games are also used to enhance the learning experience. This phase of the learning of proper etiquette may include grooming lessons, lessons on how to dress up properly for social occasions, etc.

After a fun introduction to proper etiquette, an etiquette consultant or coach may move on to discussing how to best behave in public. Children are taught how they can be kinder and more polite in their everyday life.

Simple things like asking gently when they want something, or being a good sport when playing with friends has a huge impact on how children are understood and accepted into social circles. By removing the ‘edge’ associated with ultra-modern living (extreme competitiveness, extreme individualism, etc.) a child is taught that there are other ways of approaching ordinary situations.

After discovering the various gems of proper etiquette that can be used in the public setting, coaches ‘zoom in’ on individual aspects of daily living, such as eating out in a fine restaurant. Table manners are taught. This is not about merely knowing which fork to use when eating dinner. It’s about being polite enough during mealtime that a child can eat with anybody without running the risk of offending anyone.

Like this article?  Read these as well:

 How Children’s Tea Parties Could Change Your Life

Tips from a Children’s Tea Party Pro

 

Tea Party Girl Invites You To Check Start An Etiquette Club In Your Own Area. Check Out http://www.MyClubEtiquette.com

Tea and Etiquette Video

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Tea and Etiquette.  What is right and what is wrong?  This simple video gives some great ideas and helps you feel confident at the tea table!

Royal Wedding Tea Time Fever – Stephen Colbert

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You knew it had to happen right?  At some point I was going to hoop and hollar about the upcoming Royal Wedding.  Let’s start it off with a bit of fun from Stephen Colbert and his ode to all things British including our favorite, TEA TIME.

Stephen takes us to Tea and Sympathy in New York and works with Hugo Vickers, the Tea Time know it all :)   So take notes ladies and gentlemen.  We wouldn’t want to royals to be offended through our t.v.’s

 

 

Tea Party Girl asks:  Will you watch the Royal Wedding with a cup of tea? 

PLEASE Stop Calling My Daughter and I (Me*) Guys!

Bad habits

I think I might start a new American reality show. Maybe I call it “America’s Next Worst Habit”. Or how about, “So You Think You Have Good Manners?” But I’m not convinced anyone (present readers excluded, of course) would watch it.

Now, don’t get me wrong. Traveling my favorite state refreshed me with its breathtaking beauty (Highway 1 between San Luis Obispo and Monterey) and quaint oases (i.e. Balboa Island). And for the most part, we were greeted by helpful and friendly residents of gorgeous Orange County. But between eating out and easy access to cable TV (I admit to some HGTV indulgence) I could finance another vacation for every time someone addressed two or more people with, “You guys”.

I don’t always have a problem with this. When my husband and sons are with me and we’re driving through In-n-Out Burger the term does not make me cringe. And in a language and culture that has few words and less protocol to support the gender differences, I can intellectualize why the phrase has risen to prominence. But as lazy language and an unconscious message I can. not. stand. it.

It spilled over into one of my tea experiences last week. A server younger than the two women attending (myself included) called us and the two children attending (my daughter included) “You Guys” through the entire tea, as in “Would you guys like some more tea?” “Are you guys all finished?” “Can I get you guys anything else?”

When addressing my daughter and her cousin (ages 7 and 3) I wish she had said, “Would you GIRLS like some more tea?” And I’m wondering if my generation thinks the word “ladies” is akin to “ma’am” and only for women the generation beyond them? I don’t mind being called a lady. If you are serving women only, why not communicate respect and say, “Are you ladies finished?” And if you’re unsure, consider dropping the labels altogether. Say, “Can I get YOU anything else?” or “How did YOU like the chocolate cake?” You is perfectly acceptable use for addressing more than one person. Even a dear friend at a bridal shower of all women addressed them as “you guys” throughout the event. It’s our new bad habit and we no longer hear it. But it sounds as grating as inserting “like” into every other sentence used to be.

So now it’s your turn. Does it bother you? How do you like to be addressed? What do you like to be called? Do you find ‘girl’ derogatory and ‘lady’ old-fashioned? Are you a server? How do you address your customers? Do you think I’m being nit-picky?

Please leave a comment and tell us what you think.

* jk left a comment pointing out my gross grammar error in the title. Yes, I needed to use “me” as the direct object. Duh! In all fairness though, the post’s purpose was to discuss etiquette, not grammar, so I’m not convinced they can be directly compared.

Bad Manners Are Closer Than You Think

 

 

If you ever break bread with others outside of your immediate family, it is possible you have been offended by others’ table manners, or they have been offended by yours. In the age of eating in the car, while standing up, and on the couch one might argue table manners are obsolete. But this is far from the case. Do you think about your table manners when you eat with others? In restaurants, when we have to share close proximity with other tables, are we aware of how we act affecting those around us?

Let’s face it, eating with someone is an intimate act. And there’s ways to make the act more attractive and less attractive. Which category do you fall in?

Here’s a list of six bad manners that are incredibly common. Do you recognize yourself or your loved ones in this list?

  1. Drinking before finishing the bite in one’s mouth.
  2. Putting food in or taking the silverware out with the inside curve of the utensil instead of the outside curve (like the picture above).
  3. Placing personal items on the table such as keys, cell phone, or purse.
  4. Touching your head or face while eating.
  5. Talking about your food preferences (likes or dislikes) during the meal.
  6. Leaning on the table with your various body parts, including arms, elbows, or chest.

 

The majority of the above bad manners involve issues of hygiene. After all, imagine accepting the bread basket from the person who just ran their hand through their hair or itched their ear? And most likely, that purse set on the table was just on the car floor.

Other table manners involve how we appear to the ones having to watch us eat. When we wash our food down with our water or chew with our mouth open, it means we are oblivious to the person sitting across from us. Remember, the purpose of etiquette is for the respect of others, showing we are aware of those we are with over ourselves.

Most likely, I am preaching to my choir of regular readers here at Tea Party Girl and you could write this article! However, manners of all kinds are common Internet search terms, because many of us are still in the dark on these matters. The days of debutante training and finishing school are over, and more and more think good manners irrelevant for their circumstances. However, an amazing amount of socializing and business take place away from the home in our society around the table. For this reason alone, good manners are not for girls only!

For further encouragement or instruction on etiquette, especially for the children in your life, there are a number of valuable resources available including:

Tonight at dinner, be aware of the dynamics around your own table. Were you surprised?