Sometimes adults take children for granted in that they think that children do not get their feelings hurt. But this not true at all. Children are also sensitive and will get hurt by certain actions you make. We’d never want to hurt the feelings of children and as parents will avoid doing so completely if it can be helped. But just like adults, there are children who are more sensitive than others and will get hurt for things that other children may just shrug over.
So what do you need to do to avoid hurting our child’s feelings? Here are some parenting tips you can do:
Parenting Tip #1: Give praise
Always give your child praise and positive reinforcement if he does something right. This is a great way of building self-esteem. Usually, sensitive children are those who have a lower self-esteem. Positive reinforcement will help bolster their sense of worth and also give them more confidence. A confident child will be able to shrug off the minor things and not get hurt easily. With a strong self-esteem they can learn to take criticism or advice more positively and not see it as a negative thing.
Parenting Tip #2: Do not criticize or put down their appearance
One of the worst things you can tell a child is that there is something negative about their physical appearance. Children have no defense over this and this kind of a putdown can have a devastating effect on them. Many adults who have low self esteem say that one of the reasons they have such low self worth is because of the criticism they got for their appearance when they were children. Unfortunately, even kids use physical appearance as a way of teasing or bullying other children. Be very aware of this and take immediate action if you find out that your child is being teased in this manner by other children.
Parenting Tip #3: Always tell them how proud your are of them.
If there’s ever one tip that will surely give your child more self confidence and bolster his self esteem is by constantly telling him how proud you are. Always look for opportunities to tell your children how much you love them and that whatever they do, you will always love and be proud of them. Parents have the most profound effect on their children that’s why positive reinforcement coming from parents is the best kind. Any achievement that they make should be reinforced with praise, while every failure should be an opportunity to tell them that failure is an opportunity to do better next time.
Photo from Harmonious Living