Parenting is the process of raising and educating a child from birth until adulthood. This is usually done in a child's family by the mother and father (the biological parents). Where parents are unable or unwilling to provide this care, the responsibility may be taken on by close relatives, such as older siblings, aunts and uncles, or grandparents. In other cases, children may be cared for by adoptive parents, foster parents, godparents, or in institutions (such as group homes or orphanages).
The relationships in the family form the basis of how children will perceive themselves and the greater world. The family is the place where the individual learns the meaning of life, develops one's “whole personality,” as well as develops physically, psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually, through each of the relationships existing in the family. The parents' role in a child's healthy development cannot be overstated.
Many of the world scriptures describe the Ultimate Being, the Creator of the World, God, as a parent. Hinduism compares the relationship between human beings and God to that of a father educating his sons: "God! Give us wisdom as a father gives to his sons. Guide us, O Much-invoked, in this path. May we live in light (Rig Veda 7.32.26)."
In the case of humans, it is usually done by the biological parents of the child in question, although governments and society take a role as well. In many cases, orphaned or abandoned children receive parental care from non-parent blood relations. Others may be adopted, raised by foster care, or be placed in an orphanage.
The goals of human parenting are debated. Usually, parental figures provide for a child's physical needs, protect them from harm, and impart in them skills and cultural values until they reach legal adulthood, usually after adolescence. Among non-human species, parenting is usually less lengthy and complicated, though mammals tend to nurture their young extensively. The degree of attention parents invest in their offspring is largely inversely proportional to the number of offspring the average adult in the species produces.parents must provide for the basic physical and emotional needs of children in their care. There is also a universal understanding of the importance of building a wide variety of physical skills and academic knowledge as the child progresses toward adulthood.
| Need | Parental task |
|---|---|
| Physical security – the safety of a child's body and life. | • Provide physical safety: shelter, clothes, nourishment • To protect a child from dangers; physical care • To care for a child's health |
| Physical development – appropriate conditions for a healthy growth of a child | • To provide a child with the means to develop physically • To train the body of a child, to introduce to exercise • To develop habits of health |
| Intellectual security – the conditions in which a child's mind can develop | • Provide moral and spiritual values with the help of scriptures based on vedas in an interesting way without imposing on them. • Provide an environment without fear, threat, and abuse |
| Intellectual development – providing opportunity to a child to learn | • Reading, writing, calculating etc. • Support and/or provide school related learning • Teach social skills and etiquette • Moral and spiritual development. As well as creating an ethics and value systems with social norms that contribute to the child's beliefs, culture; and customs |
| Emotional security – to help protect a child's psyche | • Provide a safe loving environment • Give a child a sense of being loved, being needed, welcomed • Emotional support, encouragement |
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