Positive self-esteem is more than having a positive self-image, it is appreciating who you are. Peer pressure is challenging for kids, as it often stifles each child’s sense of individuality and encourages kids to follow along with popular opinion to “fit in” with other children. According to KidsHealth from Nemours, self-esteem can enable children to handle conflicts and give them the confidence to stand up against negative peer pressures. Kids who feel good about themselves can be themselves and grow into healthy adults. Choosing activities that help bolster self-esteem gives kids an opportunity to become more resilient against negative peer pressure.
Self-Discovery Crafts
Crafts that let children express themselves can help children develop a sense of self and feel proud to share their individuality with others. Help your child make a scrapbook featuring all of his accomplishments, fun activities, and spotlight the moments when he excelled. You also can let your child make a poster about himself. Use poster board, old magazines, craft paper, scrapbooking supplies and child safety scissors with some glue. The board should answer the question: “Who are you?” Make this an opportunity for him to share his likes and personal talents. Keep the board in your child’s room – you can make a new one each year or make an add-on poster every year.
Goal-Achieving Activities
In Parenting Magazine, Maureen Stout, Ph.D., author of “The Feel-Good Curriculum: The Dumbing Down of America's Kids in the Name of Self-Esteem,” made a correlation between achievement and self-esteem: “When you achieve something, you feel good. If we make sure children know they are important, help them to discover their individual gifts, then give them the skills to succeed, they will.” Achievements can be regarded as the “secret to self-esteem” because they are real events and occurrences about which an individual can be proud. Achievements are experiences that help develop a child’s skills and abilities. Finding activities that do not just take up time, but rather help build skills and achieve goals can be a tremendous, tangible boost to a child’s self-esteem. When looking at art classes, musical instrument lessons, sporting activities ask the instructors what goals will be achieved during the course session. If you find that your child will gain additional skills or improve upon established skills, then it may be something worth investing your time in.
Martial Arts
Unlike team sports which emphasize team-building skills, most martial arts disciplines focus on individual development. Whether or not a kid has dreams of being a black belt, training hard to earn new belt ranks teaches kids how to work hard to achieve smaller goals (colored belts) on the way to a bigger overall goal (black belt). Most martial arts lessons will help kids learn how to defend themselves or how to handle bullying. Self-esteem can be one of the results of building a physically and mentally strong child.
