Building self-esteem in children

“Through Creative Education, our mission is to empower young people to believe in themselves and fulfil their dreams.”

Here at One Day, one of our main aims is to help increase a child’s confidence; in all of our workshops we create safe creative spaces for children to freely express themselves without judgement. We want them to feel confident and let go of any inhibitions, as this is where creativity thrives the most.

According to NHS Choices, positive self-esteem is important when learning how to deal with stronger emotions and building positive relationships. Not only this, but children with lower self-esteem often are those more inclined towards a ‘can’t do’ attitude, and generally, a ‘can’t do’ attitude will lead to them giving up more easily and less likely to try new things. Self-doubt is something that we all experience, even throughout adulthood, and often it’s something that children are unsure how to deal with.

Building self-esteem in children starts from the day that they are born and both parents and teachers play a huge role in this. So how can we help?

“What you think, you become”

Well, it’s not that easy! but we can take a step in the right direction.

It is important to take time to think about how we feel and acknowledge it. Our mindfulness workshops will always begin by talking about how we feel that day and thinking about why we feel it. If it’s a negative feeling, we accept it and think about ways to overcome it. If we try to focus on the positives of the day, these are put at the forefront of our consciousness and we’re more likely to feel more positive and confident in turn.

Physically changing our body’s posture is also important in feeling positive. If we act like we feel confident, for example by widening our stance, standing tall and speaking out clearly, our body language completely changes and we can remember what it feels like to feel confident.

Celebrate what they’re good at

Whether this is by giving verbal praise, talking about things they have achieved or by physically displaying rewards like medals or certificates, this is a great way of helping them to believe in themselves, no matter how small the achievement. By focusing on positive achievements, less emphasis is put on what they might not be so good at, and reminds them what they are capable of whilst filling them with confidence to try new endeavours.

Breathing exercises are a great mindfulness technique and we use them in all of our mindfulness workshops. We wanted to share this one with you as it can be practiced anywhere and it’s a great skill that will give them a solid, sturdy foundation from which to explore and experience the world:

Get your kiddos into a comfy position and ask them to close their eyes. Ask them to draw their breath in through their nose for three and out the mouth for three. When your mindful ones are into the rhythm of breathing ask them to try this: ‘As you breathe in, imagine that your thoughts are forming as little clouds above your head. Imagine the cloud floating away as you breathe out. Keep breathing slow, strong breaths and let your thoughts come, and then go.’