What does self-esteem mean?

Self-esteem is a way in which a child values himself or herself.

What are the characteristics of children with high self-esteem?

These children:

• Make friends easily
• Show enthusiasm for new activities
• Are cooperative and follow age appropriate rules
• Are able to control their behaviour
• Play by themselves and with other children
• Are creative and have their own ideas
• Are happy, full of energy and talk to others without much encouragement

What are the characteristics of children with low self-esteem

They:

• Are unhappy
• Have poor self-confidence
• Have feeling of hopelessness
• Feel tired or fatigue most of the time
• Look on the worst side of everything
• Have no self-respect
• Perform poorly in school

What are positive factors for self-esteem?

Factors which nurture or boost self-esteem include:

• Love
• Security
• Guidance
• Acknowledgement
• Encouragement

How can you help to build high self-esteem in your child?

You should:

• Praise your child’s successes, even small ones
• Give sincere affection
• Show interest in each child’s activities, projects or problems
• Explain to child what to do and what not to do
• Try to ignore temper tantrums and other negative behaviour
• Show appreciation when your child cooperate, help you, say kind things to other children
• Respond affectionately when your child behave well
• When a child misbehaves, separate the misbehaviour from the child, e.g. say “I don’t like it when you throw toys, but I still like you.”

There are also actions that may lower children’s self-esteem

They include :

• Expecting too much or too little from children
• Yelling or criticizing children, especially in front of other people
• Calling children clumsy, stupid, lazy etc.
• Overprotecting or neglecting children