Australian parents have abandoned table manners, allowing their kids to eat however they want as long as they finish their food.
A new survey found 57 per cent of parents have given up trying to enforce good table etiquette letting children play video games, watch TV in their rooms, burp and talk with their mouths full while eating dinner.
Playing with food, making a mess, arguing with siblings and eating in their underwear was also acceptable as long as kids ate without complaint, according to the survey of 1000 parents conducted by Meat & Livestock Australia.
The study showed most families eat dinner together at the table four times a week, 45 per cent of kids had eaten at least one meal on the couch, often while watching television, in the past week.
Some 35 per cent had dined out at a restaurant on a friend’s house in the past seven days, while 8 per cent had eaten in their bedroom, 8 per cent outside and 7 per cent on the floor.
But while parents might find it easier to let table manners slide, etiquette expert Anna Musson, who runs The Good Manners Company, says neglecting them sets kids up for failure.
“Table manners came about as a way of segregating the classes,” Ms Musson told aww.com.au. “A person’s social standing was based on their knowledge of table manners and as much as we like to think that we’ve moved on, we still judge a person by their table manners.
“Parents giving up on manners and placing value on things like eating all their food, finishing their homework, they’re holding their children back from future success.”
Anna Musson’s important table manners for children
Children aged 2-4 should:
Sit at a table, even if it’s a little table, for every meal;
Learn to say “excuse me” when they burp;
Chew with their mouth closed.
Children aged four and up should:
Sit at the family table (use a booster seat if necessary);
Keep elbows off the table;
Not speak with their mouths full;
Never use phones or video games at the table;
Keep the TV off while eating;
Participate in family conversation.
Your say: Do you think table manners are important? Are kids these days sloppier than older generations at the dinner table?
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