6 Steps to Building Self-Esteem in Children
Self-esteem is the foundation of how a person acts, thinks and feels about the world and themselves.
What factors make up self-esteem? Self-confidence, pride, self-sufficiency, self-respect, and independence all combine to make self-esteem. The majority of our self-esteem is developed during childhood. Especially in kids, self-esteem constantly changes as we experience different social interactions and new events.
Enhancing a child’s self-esteem is the first step to ensuring his or her right to personal safety. Keeping children away from physical harm is only secondary.
A child’s self-esteem is based on a positive relationship with parents and eventually teachers. Parents can foster that can-do attitude in their children with a “Wow!” or a “That’s great!” every time they accomplish a feat.
But praise and positive reinforcement alone will not make children feel better automatically. Providing them with lots of love, care, and understanding is equally significant. Children who are happy and confident may still experience low self-esteem because they do not feel loved. Likewise, children who are loved and pampered at home may still feel inadequate and incompetent, thus ending up with low self-esteem. Hence, a balance of both should be present.
Delivering positive messages and engaging in constructive communication lead to a healthy self-perception. Try these time-tested tips to enhance your child’s can-do attitude.
1. Use positive words. For instance, telling a child what you would like them to do in a way that excludes words like “no” or “bad”. You can help your child maintain a positive attitude by being positive yourself.
2. Allow a child to finish their own sentence Children begin to feel unimportant if you are always putting words into their mouth. Let them finish what they’re trying to say without interruption.
3. Get on their level. If you are talking to a toddler, you should kneel down to speak to them. The child should be able to see your face without straining to look up.
4. Take turns in the conversation. Agree on who speaks first, and who speaks next. It is important for parents to encourage kids to verbalize their ideas and feelings, but to also wait for the go signal to speak. Children should be able to understand that if people talk all at the same time, they will end up understanding nothing.
5. Speak calmly, and keep irritation and a critical tone out of your voice A calm voice keeps a child from panicking. Use words that the child will comprehend. Let kids know what they need to do, and why or why not they should do something.
6. Don’t be afraid to discipline. If you child misbehaves, tell them in a simple way they understand that the behavior is unacceptable, and explain what behavior you expect.