In this article, we discussed the meaning of boosting children self esteem and body positivity, benefits, we also talked about the ways we can boost it.
Definition
Boosting a child’s self-esteem means helping them feel good about themselves and develop a positive sense of worth. Self-esteem is a child’s overall awareness of themselves, and it’s based on their beliefs and opinions. Children with good self-esteem feel confident and capable, and they believe they can succeed if they try.
Self-esteem is a child’s overall sense of worth or personal value. It describes the way they feel about themselves. A child is not born with a high or low self-esteem — they have to learn how to feel good about themselves.
Kids who feel good about themselves have the confidence to try their best at new things. They feel proud of what they can do. Self-esteem also helps kids cope with mistakes. They feel encouraged to try again, even if they fail at first. Self-esteem helps kids do better at school, at home, and with friends.
Body positivity is a social movement and philosophy that promotes the idea that everyone deserves a positive body image, regardless of society’s standards of beauty. It encourages people to love and accept their bodies, and to challenge unrealistic beauty standards.
Benefits of Body Positivity
Body positivity can have many benefits, including:
Emotional and health benefits: People with a positive body image are less likely to develop anxiety and depression, and are less at risk of eating disorders.
Self-confidence: Body positivity can help people feel more confident about their bodies.
Setting an example: People who practice body positivity can set a good example for younger generations.
Some ways to practice body positivity include:
Adding positive affirmations to your social media feed
Taking unfiltered pictures of yourself having fun
Acknowledging what you like about your body in your posts
Thinking healthier, not skinnier
Complimenting others freely
Surrounding yourself with positivity
Focusing on the things you like about yourself
Stopping comparing yourself to others
Cutting out negative self-talk.
Ways to Boost Your Child’s Self-Esteem
As a parent, you want your kids to feel happy about themselves and have good self-esteem (also called a self-image). Your words and actions affect it more than anything else, starting from when they’re babies. Your child absorbs your tone of voice, body language, and every expression.
Self-esteem can come easier to some kids than others. If your child’s self-esteem is low, here are ways you can help boost it:
Spend time with them helps in boosting children esteem
Making time for your children will make your kids feel that they are important to you. Have fun and do activities together like watching a movie or playing ball games which they enjoy.
Help your child learn to do things will help in boosting their esteem
For a baby, learning to hold a cup or take first steps sparks a sense of understanding and delight. As a child grows, things like learning to dress, read, or ride a bike are chances for self-esteem to grow.
Be attentive to what they say
Give your children full attention and listen to them. Ask them about their friends, teachers and the activities they do in school to find out how they are coping. Offer them advice or help where appropriate.
Praise efforts is very effective in boosting children esteem
Avoid praising only results (like getting an A) or qualities (like being smart or athletic). Instead, congratulate kids on effort, progress, and attitude. For example: “You’re working hard on that project,” “You’re getting better at these spelling tests,” or, “I’m proud of you for practicing piano — you’ve really stuck with it.” With this kind of praise, kids put effort into things, work toward goals, and try. This makes them more likely to succeed.
Avoid classification
When disciplining your children, avoid using words like lazy, naughty or stupid. Labels do not help your child learn what acceptable behavior is and may lead them to believe that they can never be good enough. Instead, correct your children’s negative behaviors by explaining how inappropriate their action was. Telling them that you love them but do not approve their wrong behavior can make them more mindful of their actions.
Be a good role model.
When you put effort into everyday tasks (like making a meal or washing the dishes), you set a good example. Your child learns to put effort into doing homework, cleaning up toys, or making the bed.
Teach them to think positively
It is important to teach your children to be positive and optimistic when faced with difficulties. This helps to boost their confidence and self-esteem as well as help them recover from setbacks and failures and continue to be motivated to work hard.
Focus on their strengths
Help your children explore their strengths. Encourage your child to try different activities and hobbies. Explain to them that different people have different strengths and are good at different things and they should be proud of what they are good at.
Notice what goes well.
It can be easy for kids to focus on what went wrong, like not doing well on a test. Unless they balance it with the good, they’ll just feel bad. When you hear your kids complain about themselves or their day, have them find something that went well instead.
Let kids help and give.
Self-esteem grows when kids see that what they do matters to others. Kids can help at home, do a service project at school, or do a favor for a sibling. Helping other people and doing kind acts builds self-esteem and other good feelings.
Conclusion
Developing your child’s self-esteem will make a big difference in his or her life. Having healthy self-esteem can act as a shield for the child when they encounter challenges in life. They will feel confident and any adversity they face will bring out the best of their abilities. As parents, we can play an important role in promoting and harnessing our children’s self-esteem