How To Foster High Self-Esteem And Confidence In Preschoolers
Are you an educator, looking for a way to increase self-esteem in preschoolers in your classroom? Are you a parent who wants to improve the confidence in your children?
Self-esteem in preschoolers is heavily influenced by home and daycare relationships. Low self-esteem in preschoolers can cause reluctance to learn and branch out to make friends or try new things.
However, high confidence in children can lead to better emotional, psychological, and educational development. Keep reading to learn more about self-esteem in preschoolers and how to foster confidence in children at home and the classroom!
The Importance Of Confidence & Self Esteem In Preschoolers
Like many things, self-esteem develops at an early age and is fortified as time goes on. Establishing confidence in children gives them a solid foundation as soon as possible.
Here are a few benefits to instilling confidence in children at an early age.
Confidence In Children Helps To Develop Resilience:
Resiliency is the skill of being able to bounce back after a problem. Confidence in children helps them to face problems, find solutions, and try again.
For example, a child with confidence won’t likely react negatively to a failure or setback. Instead, their confidence allows them to navigate it. A confident preschooler is more likely to find a solution and try again.
Creating A Positive Self Identity
Self-Identity is the way a child perceives themselves in comparison to others. This sense of identity is strongly rooted in a child’s self-esteem.
Healthy self-esteem in preschoolers leads to having a stable self-identity and higher self-worth. Plus, it helps a child see themself as an individual.
Growing Healthy Relationships
With confidence and good self-esteem, a child can establish healthy relationships with both adults and other children.
For example, high self-esteem in preschoolers helps them to broaden their horizons and make friends with peers. It also helps them have the courage to stand out from the crowd.
Cultivating A Growth Mindset
A growth mindset is a belief that with effort, you can do anything you set your mind to. This kind of mindset is crucial to the development of any aspect.
Confidence in children inspires this sort of mindset and has been scientifically proven to help children. For example, a child with a growth mindset will branch out, try new things, and develop new skills.
How To Foster Self Esteem And Confidence In Preschoolers At Home
As mentioned, a child needs to feel loved and accepted to establish healthy self-esteem. Like many things, self-esteem in preschoolers starts at home.
Here are some things you can do to help your child foster healthy self-esteem.
Showing Love & Acceptance
Parents should always encourage children to be open and honest. Confidence in children can determine whether they’re reluctant to speak up or have no problem opening up.
To help encourage your preschooler to be more confident in sharing, show them love and acceptance. Engage in a conversation about what they love about themselves. This promotes a high level of self-love and confidence in children.
Another neat way to get your kids engaged in self-love is to create an acronym using their name. Then, help them think of positive descriptions for each letter.
Provide Structure & Responsibility
Providing structure and responsibility inspires confidence in preschoolers and allows them to establish a sense of purpose.
Here’s an example. Get your child to help you bake cookies or assign them a chore to do at home.
Reward them for being responsible and show appreciation for their help. This makes a child feel valued, which is also very important to self-esteem in preschoolers.
Support Your Child’s Interests
Children have to explore to find out what they like and don’t like.
Encourage your children in whatever they are interested in. Also, do what you can to help them explore this new talent or interest.
If your child likes art, purchase some materials that they can get creative with.
How To Foster Self Esteem And Confidence In Preschoolers In The Classroom
Healthy self-esteem in preschoolers promotes a love of learning and better development of skills and educational interests. Here are some ways you can foster confidence in children in the classroom.
Identify A Child’s Strength And Interests
Instead, they may take to a friend’s interests or want direction. Prompt them to explore.
Encourage children when they gravitate toward a certain interest or skill.
Here’s an example. If a child shows interest in science, create an activity to suit their love of science. Give them what they need to explore that.
Show Them That Mistakes Are Okay
Confidence in children displays itself in trying again. Low self-esteem in preschoolers may show itself in getting upset at mistakes.
Encourage your preschoolers that mistakes aren’t the end of the world. And that with a little thought, there is always a solution.
Help your preschoolers to understand how to learn from a mistake and help find solutions. This is great for developing problem-solving skills.
Ensure Inclusivity
Group activities can help children to feel confident. Find something that all your preschoolers have in common. Use this to help them bond.
Also, promote sharing, helping, and including children that you may notice have lower self-esteem.
Montessori Learning Centre
The Montessori Learning Centre is a Calgary daycare and preschool. We provide Montessori-based education and childcare in an environment that promotes healthy self-esteem and self confidence in preschoolers.
Our specially trained staff are most passionate about providing a stimulating environment that allows the child to explore and develop strong cognitive and intellectual skills. Through unique and individualized lesson plans, every child’s unique needs are met. Our preschool lesson planning also enhances the child’s social, emotional and literacy development. Our lesson plans also include a very unique approach to mindful movement and emotional awareness; this fostering a sense of respect for individuality and setting the foundation for ethics and values in the child. Through this holistic approach, the child acquires higher levels of self-confidence and self-esteem.
We strive on ensuring high levels of self-esteem in preschoolers, which creates a love for learning and establishes a positive mindset in the early years. The mixed-age classrooms that our daycare center in Calgary provides, promotes inclusivity and cooperation, which develops strong social skills and good values. Our preschool environment allows children to make independent choices and direct their own learning experiences. This fortifies high self-esteem and encourages a child to explore and learn more. If you’d like to learn more about how we inspire high self-esteem in children through our practices, contact us!