Trust in them

Have to love that old saying "How can our kids become trustworthy if we don't learn to trust them".
I find that at the age of 2 years old, teaching the value of trust to my daughter is a vital part of learning for her.
Simple things such as using the DVD player and not scratching the DVD's themselves is both instilling trust and another important learning skill, independence.
Teaching your kids to do everything that you think that they can do, and even having a go at the things that you think that they can't do, will begin the process of kids learning that they can be trusted with everything that they do. When a child attempts do something, such as using a DVD player and makes a mistake, the best thing to do is to suggest to them to try again, or show them again how to do it.
Getting angry at a child for making a mistake will only lead to them not wanting to learn and even though they don't understand it, will not feel that your trust in them is really there.