Of course, all children will have their individual personalities and characters. This is nature. But there are also a number of different qualities that we want to instil into our children to help them grow into the most well rounded adults possible. While it won’t necessarily be possible to make a shy child the most bold and outgoing person in the room, there are steps that you can take to teach them self confidence. While you may not be able to make an extremely chatty child the greatest listener, you can show them to care for others’ opinions and to take in as much of what others are saying as possible and to take these words into consideration. So, what different qualities may you want to teach your child as they grow up? Here are just a few.
Compassion
If there’s one thing we want our children to be, it’s compassionate. Compassion is the ability to show sympathy to others and understand how they must be feeling in different situations. It can help your child to be caring and considerate towards others and to generally be a kind individual as they grow into an adult. However, it can be difficult to know exactly how to teach your child compassion. Here are a few steps you can take to help them along the way.
- Encourage them to see situations from someone else’s perspective – if they’ve got into an argument with their friend or someone has done something differently to how they think they should have, encourage them to step into the other person’s shoes and to try to understand why they might be thinking or acting this way.
- Get a pet – of course, you should only get a pet if you are committed to that pet. Remember that dogs often live around 15 years and cats live around 20 years. This is a lifetime commitment and a pet shouldn’t solely serve the purpose of teaching your child compassion – they should be considered part of the family. If a pet is right for you, having a pet can help a child to understand how their actions impact others and can teach them to care for the pet and do what’s best for it. Take a look at some Famous kitties and dogs for some pet inspiration.
- Lead by example – if you show compassion to others, your child is likely to follow suit and act in a similar way.
Confidence
People with confidence tend to go further in life. They aren’t afraid to ask for what they want. They will say when something’s wrong or when something needs to change. They’ll believe in themselves and their abilities. So, you’re going to want your child to be as confident as possible. Of course, confidence doesn’t come naturally to everyone. But there are a few things you can do to boost your child’s confidence. Here are some to try out.
- Praise them – when your child does something positive or good, praise them. This will help them to feel that they are good at what they are doing and they will continue to do these things with more and more confidence each time. Praise can be deeply reassuring.
- Avoid harsh criticism – while criticism can be constructive, be careful how you word it. Avoid hurting your child’s feelings or making them feel as though they are bad at something or have failed at something. Word criticism in a more positive and encouraging way.
- Focus on their strengths – encourage your child to focus on the things that they are good at. Repeated success will make them feel much more confident. Of course, they do need to work on areas they’re not so naturally good at, but focus more on their strengths.
Honesty
Honesty is important in life. It can build trust and strong relationships. It also allows your child to be honest with themselves and to see the world in a true and clear light. Of course, all kids will tell fibs now and then. But there are a few steps you can take to encourage honesty as much as possible.
- Reward the truth – if your child tells you the truth about something that may have been difficult for them to tell you, make sure that this is rewarded. Whether that’s through words of affirmation, a treat or anything else. Make sure that they know that the truth is appreciated and worth telling.
- Avoid lying yourself – when you lie to your children, you are simply telling them that lying is an okay thing to do. Wherever possible, avoid lying to your children. It’s in their best interests that they see you as an honest and open person too!
- Don’t test their honesty – it can be tempted to ask children questions in a way that will encourage them to lie. Avoid testing their honesty by asking questions that they are likely to lie in response to, purely for the sake of testing their honesty. You need your children to trust you in order for them to be honest with you going forward.
Creativity
Nowadays, a lot of emphasis is placed on solid knowledge in logical subjects. But you want to teach your child creativity too. Being able to let their creative side loose can help them to see the world in a different and more positive way. You never know, they might have a talent too!
- Incorporate creative activities into their day – sure, testing maths and spelling is important. But you should try to incorporate some creative activities into your child’s day too. Encourage them to write a poem or story. Paint with them. Use plasticine and clay to create models. Try making your own mosaics or potato prints. These activities are all great fun and will encourage creativity at the same time!
- Encourage your child to think outside of the box – this is easier said than done, but try to encourage your child to think about things in different ways to the ones they’ve necessarily been taught so far.
Of course, there are many more great characteristics that you may want to instill or encourage in your children. Those listed above are just a few. But hopefully, they’ll help you to get this journey started out in the right direction and they will be greatly beneficial for your little ones!
Kori
Latest posts by Kori (see all)
- Cultivating A Happier Home Environment In 5 Steps - March 1, 2024
