I'd really like my Dad to come to the reservoir with me some mornings and watch the ducks take off. Doing what our kids want to do with us sends a powerful message of love. Children need values, guidelines and standards by which to govern their own lives. Guidance is better than punishment. A guiding parent teaches that positive or negative consequences follow certain attitudes and behaviors.
Guidance helps children get what they want in ways parents feel good about.
Guiding parents teach by example, set limits within their values, and involve their children in limit-setting and other processes to the extent they can for the age of their child. This means having a knowledge of what is appropriate at various stages of child development. My children tend to have a difficult first year in public school. One of my children's kindergarten terrorism was legendary. Barbara and I were concerned, but were also confident that the child would outgrow the trait.