Building Self-Esteem Starts Early

Entire books have been written about children and the importance of self-esteem. Many parents worry about their children growing up without a sense of confidence. Parents are right to worry. Self esteem simply refers to the way we see ourselves, the way we value ourselves, and the way we feel about ourselves. This very simple definition, though, belies how important self-esteem really is. Studies have shown that children with healthy self-esteem are more willing to be creative, are healthier, are happier, and do better in school and with their peer groups. Self-esteem can protect children from drug and alcohol abuse. While it is possible to improve self-esteem at any age, is often easiest to start developing a positive self-esteem early in life. Parents can help their children by:

1. Working on their own self-esteem. Children will often model the self-esteem that their parents display. Parents who are often complaining about themselves or undermining their own achievements are likely to pass on the same behaviors to their own children.
   
   
2. Not expecting perfection. It is hard for children to feel appreciated when the bar is set too high. While it is important for children to have routine, discipline, and limits, is also important to communicate to children what you expect of them, and ensure that those expectations are reasonable.
   
   
3. Being quick with praise and careful with criticism. Make sure that you praise your child when your child does something correctly, even if he or she does something that is not perfect. Say something positive to your child every day. You don’t have to avoid all criticism -- children often learn by being told what they do wrong as well by what they do right -- but you do have to be careful how you word criticism. You should never criticized by using ridicule or shame. Ideally, you should discuss mistakes in a calm and private fashion, working with the child to develop an idea of what the child can do differently next time. Praise more than you criticize.
   
   
4. Making sure that your child develops good self-thoughts. Researchers have shown that the things we say to ourselves have a deep impact on our self-esteem. If a child makes statements such as "I'm not smart” or "I don't know how to do that” that can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Help your change these statements to "I can do it if I try” or "I can learn to do that.”
   
   
   
   

   If you want your child to have a positive day care environment where he or she will learn about self-esteem and develop good future success skills, consider Robin’s Nest Child Care. Children at Robin’s Nest Child Care get plenty of positive reinforcement that helps them grow personally as well as educationally.