Everton A. Robinson’s A Child’s Guide to Wisdom aims to help parents and guardians teach children life principles.

Robinson asks, which you would rather: a wise child or an educated child? He answers: “[Y]ou would want your child to be wise. Why? Because…a wise child would choose to be educated. However, an educated child…may not choose to be wise.” The book includes Bible verses on its opening pages and some mentions of God, indicating it’s based on Judeo/Christian ideals.

Formulated on the idea “that it takes 21 repetitions of a thought or action to form a habit,” Robinson developed a rewards system for learning concepts such as accountability, honesty, modesty, optimism, punctuality, service and work ethic. His system involves selecting one principle per week and repeating it aloud numerous times, so children develop a foundation in wisdom to carry them into adulthood. Robinson suggests parents/guardians/teachers implementing his program will be “developing future men and women of good character, strong integrity and wisdom.”

Unfortunately, his book suffers from its sparse text. The author provides a few pages of explanation on implementing his program but no additional guidance throughout. Each principle stands alone on a single page with its definition, numbers marking the number of times the child has repeated the principle (up to 21), and a certificate of completion. Robinson recommends parents sign the certificate, frame it and hang it in the child’s room as a sign of accomplishment, but the “certificates” are only comprised of a short, fill-in-the-blanks paragraph without adornment. Oddly, although Robinson’s book appears intended for religious audiences, he doesn’t incorporate scripture as a definitive source of reference.

It seems unlikely that simply repeating a principle 21 times will cause children to incorporate it into their lives, and the lack of elaboration on each concept and scriptures supporting these principles leave the book feeling unfinished and sparse.

In all, its usefulness as a tool for character building in children is highly limited.

Also available in hardcover and ebook.