Parenting Perspective 

Children often view their parents as being all-knowing and infallible. While this perception can feel reassuring in their early years, it is important for them to learn that parents are also human and can make mistakes. Explaining this gently and honestly helps to build trust, honesty, and resilience within your relationship. 

Use Simple and Honest Language 

Communicate this idea to your child in simple, age-appropriate language. You could say, “Mummy and Daddy also make mistakes sometimes. We are still learning how to be the best parents we can be, just like you are learning to grow.” This helps to normalise the idea of error without damaging your parental authority. 

Acknowledge Your Mistakes Calmly 

When you make a mistake, model humility in a calm and straightforward manner. For example, “I raised my voice just now, and that was not a fair way to speak to you. I am sorry.” This shows your child that acknowledging one’s errors is a sign of strength and integrity, not weakness. 

Connect Mistakes to Personal Growth 

Frame your mistakes as learning opportunities. You can remind your child, “When we make mistakes and say we are sorry, it helps us learn how to do better next time.” This encourages your child to see mistakes not as reasons for shame, but as valuable opportunities to grow and improve. 

Uphold Boundaries with Humility 

Admitting a mistake does not mean that you have to abandon your family’s rules or boundaries. You can say, “I was wrong to be so impatient with you, but the rule about cleaning up your toys before bed still stands.” This teaches a sophisticated lesson, balancing parental humility with loving consistency. 

By explaining that parents also make mistakes, you teach your children invaluable lessons in honesty, resilience, and fairness, while simultaneously deepening their trust in you as a parent who is both human and caring. 

Spiritual Insight 

Islam honours the virtues of humility and fairness, especially within family life. Acknowledging our mistakes as parents does not reduce our dignity in the eyes of our children; rather, it increases our sincerity and teaches them the values that are most beloved to Allah Almighty. 

Allah Almighty states in the noble Quran at Surah Al Aa’raaf (7), Verses 23: 

‘Both of them said: “Our Sustainer, we have transgressed upon ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and bestow upon us Your mercy, then indeed, we shall remain in a depreciated state”.’ 

This verse, the repentance of Adam and Eve, reminds us that even the first human beings admitted their mistakes. This teaches us that confessing our errors and seeking forgiveness is an integral part of faith and humility. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ also taught that making mistakes is simply part of the human condition. 

It is recorded in Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 4251, that the holy Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: 

‘Every son of Adam commits sin, and the best of those who sin are those who repent.’ 

This teaches us that every human being makes mistakes, but the best people are those who have the courage and humility to admit them and seek to improve. When parents show that they can acknowledge their own faults and learn from them, children learn a vital lesson: perfection is not required in Islam, but sincerity is. They learn that their faith values honesty, repentance, and growth, which nurtures both their emotional awareness and their spiritual development.