How do you answer a 4-year old who is asking why is it not OK to lie?

Answer 1

Tell the four-year old that you are going to get them a big present, and they shoudl close their eyes. Then leave the room and don't come back. When they find you later, tears welled in eyes, tell them that that's what lying does to others.

Answer 2

The issue here is really delicate. This is because it has become so common to see people lying. In fact, recently some kids told some other kids that it was ok to lie because everyone lies.
So the very first place to start is to teach the kid the difference between "good" and "bad". Let the kid tell you the things he/she considers to be bad...
Then you can move on to explain that lying is one of the bad things. Ofcourse, it sure won't hurt if you tell him/her that God does not like liars. Remember, if you gave not brought up the kid to have a knowledge of God, you sure will be talking crap here, so here is a good time to introduce the kid to the one who created the universe.
My sisters kids see lying as a very bad thing and they can even detect it when others tell lies and report to their mother.. Spanking may well help for some kids, but it is very important for the child to understand why he/she is being spanked.
You have a job here, but I tell you, starting now will make you proud of the kid in the future!

Answer 3

My 4 year old used to lie. I told him that lying hurts people's feelings and that it is wrong. I told him that if he lied, I would never know when he was telling the truth and wouldn't be able to help him if he really was telling the truth because I wouldn't believe him. I don't know if he really heard any of the explanation or just got tired of getting into trouble over it, because he grew out of it and doesn't lie anymore (or he's gotten better at it) Ha Ha.

Answer 4

My four year old has had an issue with this lately. She tells a lie even though she knows it's not okay. I just sat down and talked to her and explained that lies hurt people. Anything that hurts another person is NOT okay to do. Also, God doesn't like us to lie. If you are a religious/spiritual person, there are plenty of good Christian books for kids about lying (and other things). Another book by Joy Berry is "Help me be good".. it's a series, and there's one about lying. I had them when I was a kid and they were really great. It shows how lies hurt other people. Good luck.

Answer 5

The lie thing can't be cured in one session, it's a process. If your child is making up stories, you might want to praise the child for her/his big imagination and THEN ask for what really happened, evwen helping the child weed out the truth from the fabrication, by helping them remember how it went with stories that you know all the parts to (That was the advice my daughter's preschool teacher gave me, she also said children at that age aren't necessarily lieing, but learning about creative story telling, and what parents need to do is help them understand the difference, not just punish)

Answer 6

Tell your child that they should always follow the Golden Rule. Treat others the way you would wish to be treated. Ask the child how they would feel if you said they could have a toy, then said they couldn't have it because you were lying. Also, it is almost impossible to tell one lie, as more lies are needed to maintain the original lie.

Answer 7

Tell him or her that it is not OK to lie. 4 year olds won't understand the concept of white lies or lying to protect someone... Explain why lying is bad (for example, it causes other people to be sad because they will be confused).

Answer 8

Kids that age are usually concerned with making sure that things are fair. They don't like it if someone else gets more candy for their treat or if that other boy gets to play with the ball two minutes longer than his "fair share". Try explaining that lies are another way of trying to get more than your fair share. Turn the tables on the child and ask him whether he would be ok with being lied to. I bet he wouldn't be.
If your family is Christian, you might want to pull out your Bible and show your child the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20), and then the Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12).

Answer 9

Give her/he the concept of God right from the beginning. This will help him/her to understand that we have a Master & we are accountable for all whether it is a lie or something else. This will also make him/her God conscious and will seek his pleasure throughout the life.
Just a nice human being is not enough; one should have some fair and love for his Master which makes it easy to discriminate between right and wrong. This will also make your replies very easy once he/she has the concept of God.

Answer 10

Tell her/him the story of the little boy who cried wolf. If you are Christians explain that It makes Jesus very sad when his children do not tell the truth. If they lie then noone will believe them when they do tell the truth. Four year olds are smarter than we give them credit for. My daughter is five. There are children's books by Joy Berry that are a great help.

Answer 11

because lying is immoral. that means it is just a bad thing to do.

the reason why, is that people can't trust you if you lie. ask the child if they would like you to lie to them all the time, or do they want to be able trust you? well, you want them to tell you the truth all the time so that you can trust them too, and also so other people will trust them too when they get older.