Raising Socially Confident Children
We all hope for our children to grow up to be well liked, socially adept and successful. Confidence and social grace are somewhat innate but there are things that we can do to help with the development of our children’s social character. Life isn’t a popularity contest, but it is important that we raise children who are able to navigate successfully through social settings. Part of social grace can be attributed to our child’s self-esteem. We as parents can build up our children’s self-esteem and mold their character through how we choose to communicate with them.
Encourage questions
A great leader isn’t afraid to ask the right questions. While your child is young, let them know that questions segue to finding solutions. Asking questions has been thought to be one of the best ways to learn. There is a difference between being confrontational and being inquisitive. During youth is the best time to show that difference. Making sure your child knows it’s okay to respectfully ask questions. This is the beginning of raising an independent thinker rather than a follower in social settings.
Have discussions before punishing
As your child grows ups, he’ll likely break a rule or do something to tick you off. These actions commonly result in a punishment in most households. But don’t just crack the whip and give your sentence, this is an excellent time to teach your child about boundaries, conflict, and self-awareness. Socially adept adults can navigate through conflict and respect boundaries. Discussing their wrong doings before a punishment can teach your child to self-reflect. It’s so important to teach self-awareness at an early age.
Let them pick out their own outfit
The younger you let little Susie put together her own ensemble the more independent she’ll become. Although this may seem minor, this small bit of independence can really give a child a sense of self that he or she may not have had. From this simple day-to-day activity your child can learn what they like and dislike while developing confidence in their decisions.
Teach your child the importance of people
Consideration for others is a really important characteristic. In addition to being confident, your children must understand that they are not alone in this world and human decency makes the world go ‘round. By asking your child how he would feel if he was treated poorly, you show him that other people are deserving of the same respect and kindness he would want. Empathy and respect for others can be taught by taking disciplinary action when your child says or does something mean to someone else. You can also drive this point home by teaching your child to acknowledge other people when they walk into a room.
Socialize your children at a young age
Your child’s social skill will take longer to develop if socializing isn’t on the regular to-do list. Sheltering your little one is a disservice to that budding personality. If it’s just you and your little one most of the time, do your child a tremendous favor and get out of the house. If you don’t have a large extended family, find out if your neighbors or co-workers have children your child can hang with. Take your child with you to your friend’s house and lead by example. Seeing social behaviors and engaging in social activities only helps these skills develop.
If your little one is shy, don’t shame them and don’t push them into uncomfortable situations. Let them develop at their own pace. Were you shy as a child? Tell us on our Facebook page.
Also read: What to Know About Speech Delay in Kids
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Written by Stephanie Parker from Sleepingbaby.com, inventors of the Zipadee-Zip
The motto for Sleeping Baby, makers of the Zipadee-Zip, is: "Inspiring Dreams One Night at A time," and that, in a nutshell, is how it all started…with one little dream that has since become the Parker family's reality. When Brett and Stephanie Parker's daughter, Charlotte, was born, the feeling that welled up inside of them was indescribable; they never realized until first looking into those baby blues of hers that they were even capable of that kind of love.
When it was time to transition baby from swaddling, the Parkers tried every sleep sack on the market and everyswaddle weaning trick they could find for nearly two weeks and nothing worked to get baby Charlotte to fall and stay asleep.
Stephanie became determined to restore sleep and sanity to their household and set out to find a solution that would soothe Charlotte's startle reflex and provide her the cozy womb-like environment she loved so much but still give her the freedom to roll over and wiggle around in her crib safely. Out of sheer desperation and exhaustion, the Zipadee-Zip was born. The first Zipadee-Zip(R) Stephanie put together on her little sewing machine worked like magic!
To date tens of thousands of Zipadee-Zips have been sold and all from word-of-mouth marketing. It is so rewarding for the Parkers to see other parents and babies getting the sleep they both need and deserve!
Interested in writing a guest blog for Sleeping Baby? Send your topic idea to pr@sleepingbaby.com.
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