Quick note: Some of the links on this page are affiliate links; if you go through them to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. I only recommend products I use myself and think would be useful for other people.
Welcome to my post about Worksheets and Learning Books for ages 4-7. I don’t know about you, but I constantly look for worksheets to complete at home, with my little one. She is very creative and loves solving puzzles and drawing.
There are so many free resources online, should you want to download and print your sheets. I will discuss and link some of the great resources below. And include links to books, should you want to purchase them for your little ones.
Quick note: Some of the links contained on this page are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. I only recommend products I use myself and think would be useful for other people.
Age-appropriate activities
When I read about gentle parenting and other parenting styles, one common theme is having age-appropriate learning. Content and activities to do, so that children can understand their abilities. We shouldn’t be expecting children to learn much beyond their abilities. That said, depending on your child, you may need to challenge them more. And this is completely your choice about what resources to download and use.
School or nursery themes
My little one is coming up to five years old. So we are still using some of the preschool sheets, in addition to the basics she is learning in Reception class at school.
I love that the school have regular home projects for us to complete. These are related to our favourite children’s stories. This leads me to our recent topic, which is one of our favourites – Julia Donaldson books.
Free Gruffalo resources
The Gruffalo was one of the first books we read with my little one. And we still have it to this day. We know it off by heart and also watch the programme on her tablet.
Our school is starting to read some of the other Julia Donaldson books, including A Squash and a Squeeze.
See the great, free resources available, if, like us, you also love these books.
My little one loves numbers. She is currently asking what clothes size I am when we visit the shops. She reads some paragraphs from my books and goes by the page number. And recognises numbers wherever she goes. Therefore, it is important to learn maths whilst at home.
I’ve spoken on my blog before about Helping Little Kids Manage Big Emotions. We even downloaded emotion flashcards to help my little one tell us what was happening for her emotionally. Children are now always able to verbalise what is happening to them or how they are feeling. Below are some resources if you want to help your little one process their emotions.
Free worksheets for managing emotions
I previously created emotion flashcards for you to print out, Feel free to download them below:
I hope you enjoyed reading through the free resources and great books available, to help your little ones develop in all areas. And do something fun with them at home.
Toddlers can be frustrating at times, but I always try and put myself in their shoes. How much emotion would you feel if you had something to say but didn’t know the words yet? Bless them. Yes, it is tough to think like this when a toddler is testing your limits and pushing your boundaries. But as adults, I feel like we must. We are responsible adults and our brains are actually capable of processing emotions. Unlike the brain of a child.
Please note – before we get into this post, I should say, I acknowledge parenting is the hardest job in the world. I get angry and frustrated, just like any other parent. But in our household, we do make a conscious effort to resolve conflict situations differently with our little ones.
I am no expert on this subject, nor do I incorporate all the elements of gentle parenting. I am still very much on a learning journey. But I wanted to share our experience in order to help other people out there.
Accepting that all behaviour is communication and it is age appropriate for their developmental stage, really allows you to parent differently.
Let’s look at the science
I think once you get your head around the fact toddlers don’t actually possess the same brain capabilities and development as adults, you can start to take things less personally. My little one is quite intelligent and can be grown up when she wants to. My hubby, mentioned the other day that sometimes we expect too much of her because of this, and we must remember the below.
Though your 3-year-old is beginning to understand the emotions they are feeling, they still have very little control over them. If they find something funny, they’ll laugh hysterically. If something makes them feel sad or angry, they’ll burst into tears. If they feel something, they are likely to act on it. This may mean snatching a toy away from another child if they want to play with it, or getting upset when they want a snack after being told they have to wait until dinnertime. Delayed gratification means nothing to them – they want it and want it now. Three- and 4-year-old children may use hitting, biting, or pushing as a way to solve conflicts. They simply don’t understand the difference between appropriate and inappropriate interactions yet. It’s your job to teach your child that there are right and wrong ways to express emotions and resolve problems with others.
How powerful is reading this? Children may also laugh as a default when they don’t know what else to do. As a parent, it could seem like they are laughing at being told boundaries, or being sneaky. But this probably isn’t the case.
Accepting that all behaviour is communication and it is age appropriate for their developmental stage, really allows you to parent differently.
When you realise toddlers are simply finding their way through the world, how to respond and they simply don’t know the way yet. The adults around them can then act accordingly.
I won’t mince my words here. Given my own upbringing, at a different stage time, where harsh discipline was accepted, I thought the term “gentle parenting” was just parents not being firm enough with their toddlers. In the very early days of having a baby, I had visions of reasoning with a little person in the supermarket and losing control. Which in turn would mean I lost control of the situation.
Joining TikTok made me realise how we parent within our family, is actually gentle parenting. And following Kelly Medina Enoson TikTok has helped. I love how honest she is and following her journey makes me feel comfortable with what we are doing. More importantly, it will never be perfect.
What changed in our parenting style?
Before our little one was born, I thought I would be a much harsher, stricter parent than I actually am.
When your little one starts moving around, touching plugs and threatening to hurt themselves every minute, you need to have parenting conversations. And you won’t always agree. My hubby and I were brought up the same way. Pretty afraid of our parents at times – that look they would give, or raised voices indicated we should stop doing this.
But I just have a burning question to ask, do you get the best out of anyone, even adults when you raise your voice? As I get older, I realise the answer is no.
Collectively, we decided a while ago we wanted to avoid shouting around our little one (this isn’t always possible – please don’t think we or any other parent is perfect – there are still disagreements and sometimes raised voices).
If we do shout, snap, or get frustrated, we talk about it together, with our little one. We say sorry and move on. And we have taught this lesson so effectively, our little one will come and apologise to us if she does something she knows she shouldn’t. Granted, it may take a while for her to walk away and come back. But she always comes back, eventually. And we try to mirror this example between ourselves.
I really believe this technique is teaching her to resolve conflict herself and how she should appropriately do this. Also that no human being is perfect. If she does something and apologies when she doesn’t need to, we explain that even adults get things wrong sometimes and this isn’t something she needs to apologise for.
In order to calm a tantrum, we also do a breathing technique with her and one of us will take her out of the situation to calm down. I believe toddlers get very overwhelmed by their surroundings. This in itself could cause a meltdown. Hell, as an adult sometimes I get overwhelmed.
They need help not frustration
Just think for a second about any situation you have ever resolved by shouting. Or being confrontational, or getting frustrated. I bet it is very few. Why then, do we get frustrated with toddlers? Surely we should be actively helping them handle emotions, especially when they don’t fully understand what is happening to them. They don’t have the capability or brain power to regulate themselves and will probably wonder why adults are also becoming frustrated.
There are some other blog posts in the Gentle Parenting category – check them out here
Parents are a guide
It’s a heavy burden to carry, but as parents, we are responsible for guiding our little ones. Whether we like it or not, how they develop now will also greatly impact their future lives.
Why it matters
Positive experiences throughout childhood help to build healthy brains, while experiencing childhood trauma and abuse can harm a child’s brain development (Shonkoff et al, 2015). But our brains always have the potential to change and grow. It’s never too late to give a child or young person positive brain-building experiences.
I was dubious about releasing this post. Simply because of my feelings when I first heard the term ‘gentle parenting’. We still have a lot to learn and our parenting style will never be perfect. But hopefully, we are setting a foundation to provide our little one with the tools she will need to thrive in life.
Keep an eye on my parenting resources page and my TikTok to follow our gentle parenting journey. I plan to share with you any resources we are using.
Any advice is also welcome – let us know in the comments below.
We have an independent toddler. She has her mummy’s personality. Although it can be difficult to manage at times, I want to nurture this side of her.
We’ve had a difficult few weeks, learning about emotions and basically having a fight for independence. As parents, we have lots of tools in place and we’ve always allowed her certain freedoms. The last few weeks have been about putting tools in place to manage emotions, whilst also encouraging independence. Challenging, but I’m sure it will be rewarding in the long run.
Quick note: Some of the links contained on this page are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. I only recommend products I use myself and think would be useful for other people.
Today I want to share with you the practical tasks we allow our toddler to do around the house. And more importantly, how this creates independence
Why it’s essential to allow a toddler to make their own decisions
We have an independent and determined toddler. However, even if we didn’t, we would still allow our children to make daily choices. Simply because it teaches great life lessons. In the future, she will need to be empowered in decision-making, in order to be successful in life.
It’s an important step in growing up. And gives them some power and control over what they do.
Benefits of providing choices include:
Giving them some control
Avoiding power-struggles
Teaching cause and effect
Helping them gain confidence.
Trust in themselves and their opinions
Self-confidence
Decisiveness
Thoughtfulness
Analytical thinking
Empathy
Here are a few tips for offering toddlers choices
Avoid too many options. Stick to two or three
Offer clear and simple choices
Make sure choices are age-appropriate, like picking what to wear or what to play with
I want to discuss some of the freedoms and choices we give our toddler. And how those choices help to teach valuable life lessons
Picking their own drinks & snacks
To successfully allow this to happen, you can ensure everything they need is easy to reach. Such as plastic toddler plates and cups, along with fridge organisers containing the snacks. Even down to a separate small bottle of milk in the fridge. The latest addition to our accessible snacks is easy-to-reach cereal dispensers. We recently bought a small dining table, so she can sit and make her own snacks safely.
Permission from an adult is a must, but the physical act of getting the snacks prepared is down to the toddler. Be prepared for spillages and mishaps – explaining it’s fine and it will clean up. As you would with any other accident in the house. At the nursery, the class learn to break up their own cereal and become more independent at meal times – something we want to mirror at home.
These days she tells me, “I’m helping you mummy because you’re busy” and it’s so lovely to watch her becoming an independent child.
Providing a choice of activities for the day can make a toddler feel empowered to feel part of the family. And more importantly, decision-making skills are developed.
It’s also more fun as an adult to just go with the flow. As parents, we see through any decision she makes. This is an important step in making your little person feel fully empowered and listened to.
What this teaches
Independence
Socials skills
Avoiding power-struggles
Their opinion matters
Their input is valuable
Picking out their own clothes
Ensuring the clothes are in an accessible and safe place is a must. But why not let the toddler go out in trousers which are back to front, if it enables them to learn to dress themselves?
I’ve done this before when we are going out on a quick journey. Some battles are simply not worth fighting.
What this teaches
Independence
Self-care skills
Learning where the clothes are located, for next time
Our toddler now has the weekly task of filling up the toilet roll holders in the bathroom. And I’m making a big deal of the fact it’s her job and she’s really good at it. Giving praise to your toddler when they complete the smallest of tasks can give them confidence.
Setting the table
At the moment we are struggling with meal times. She is fidgeting and it turns into a negotiation about how much she will eat. We are working on it – but that’s a whole other blog post!
Setting the table has helped in allowing the whole family to sit down for a meal and talk about our day. This routine and her feeling she contributed her part really help tackle the other issues we are facing.
Put dirty clothes in the laundry basket
As a toddler, she gets very dirty clothes. We have regular paint stains from the nursery. Tomato sauce stains from eating. And I won’t go into the toilet habits she is learning at the moment. Let’s just say, this creates more washing for the parents involved.
Getting her to put dirty clothes into the laundry basket can help to explain the process of washing clothes. And hopefully, make her realise that natural consequences occur when a mess happens. That said, we want to nurture the creative, messy, painting side. It’s just great to teach her about the consequences of accidents and other inappropriate messy behaviour.
It’s all a learning curve – for us as parents, and for her.
I recently introduced you all to our hamster, Fluffy. For anyone who’s ever had a hamster as a pet, you will know it’s about perseverance. We have a female and she is also very independent. My toddler apparently stood in Pets At Home and said “This is the one for me” and I maintain to this day that they are kindred spirits. Anyhow, it’s been a long road trying to tame her and we are not even at the picking-up stage yet.
Download the free toddler chores checklist – amend as needed or download the PDF file below:
Despite this, both my toddler and hamster are doing well. My toddler can now open the cage, and hand the hamster treats. And because Fluffy knows her smell she carefully takes the treat from her.
The cutest moments involve my toddler sitting by the cage and telling Fluffy about her day. The next step is creating an obstacle course (with safety gates so she can’t escape) and taking her out of the cage for playtime – TikTok videos will follow. Watch this space.
As parents, we’ve always explained the importance of recycling. And thanks to programmes like Cocomelon it was easy to do! We have separate recycling and rubbish bins and frequently ask her to put rubbish away for us.
This has in turn resulted in her also taking plates and cups to the kitchen when we’ve finished eating. As a parent, it’s like being looked after in a cafe and it’s actually really nice.
Check out all the other blog posts in the parenting section:
Our toddler loves standing on her stool and helping with the washing up. We make sure the water is lukewarm and she only has plastic plates and cups to wash up. Her grandparents also mirror this when she stays at their house. It’s a great task to allocate to a toddler, with parental supervision of course.
Making the bed
What toddler doesn’t love making bed day? A chance to jump on a freshly stripped bed. We now get her involved in putting the pillowcases back on and sorting out the duvet cover.
Setting up the bathroom for bath time
Our little one knows where her bath towels are and we have a box with bath toys in it. Because we sometimes get morning baths and we are in a rush, she always asks me whether she can play with her bath toys first.
We also have a basket with shampoos and body wash – she is learning which one to use in which area of her body. And also now washes her own hair. She’s even recently got out of the bath, using her stool and we find her chilling on the sofa in her bath towel.
Gardening
Our little pumpkin was recently given a sunflower by my dad’s work friend and she regularly waters it. She’s also got her own gardening tools. When we move house, the aim is to build her a mud kitchen. I’m sure this will contribute to the volume of dirty clothes I need to wash. But it’s all good fun.
Clearing away toys
Something nursery teaches the toddlers, is tidy-up time. Where regardless of who has made the mess, they all participate in the tidying-up efforts.
At home, we’ve recently organised toys into storage boxes and explained where each one lives. As a parent, it makes my life much easier. And she is learning to put toys back into the correct, allocated boxes.
Dust furniture and clean the glass
Like any toddler, she loves spraying water. It was only right that we eventually gave her these small cleaning tasks around the house. Because of the chemicals involved it’s only recently she’s allowed to do it. And we are careful to explain she should only spray the surface and wipe it with a cloth. (DISCLAIMER -parental supervision is also involved and she is a pretty intelligent child, who would never mess around with chemicals anyway).
In turn, this has also helped with her aiming her toddler perfume in the right direction too!
Final Thoughts
I hope you enjoyed reading about the tasks we give our toddler to encourage independence.
What tips do you have for dealing with toddler emotions and encouraging independence?
Please share them in the comments, because they will help other parents out there.
Play is not only a source of fun and enjoyment for children but also an essential way of stimulating cognitive growth. Children’s play with a wide range of activities will challenge their minds, promote problem-solving, and enhance cognitive skills. Let’s explore the significance of play in nurturing cognitive development and provide you with some practical tips to maximize the cognitive benefits of play.
Imaginative Play Expands Creativity and Language Skills
Imaginative play, including activities like role-playing and pretend play, invites children to craft intricate scenarios, characters, and narratives from their creativity. Such engagement not only sparks their inventive potential but also nurtures abstract thinking and language skills development. Children become mini storytellers, weaving complicated plots and stepping into diverse roles and perspectives.
While immersing themselves in the vibrant world of imaginative play, children also get a chance to explore emotions, enhancing their understanding and expression of feelings. Thus, their cognitive abilities, encompassing problem-solving, communication, and critical thinking skills, experience a considerable boost.
Construction Play Builds Spatial Awareness and Problem-Solving Skills
Construction play, involving building blocks, puzzles, and construction sets, promotes cognitive development in several ways. Children learn to analyze shapes, sizes, and spatial relationships as they manipulate and connect pieces together. This type of play enhances problem-solving skills as children face challenges in building structures or completing puzzles. Additionally, construction play encourages fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and logical thinking, laying a strong foundation for cognitive development.
Games and Puzzles Strengthen Memory and Strategic Thinking
Games and puzzles are excellent tools for nurturing cognitive development. Memory games, card games, and puzzles help children enhance their memory skills as they try to remember patterns, sequences, or rules. Strategic board games cultivate critical thinking and decision-making abilities as children strategize, plan, and predict outcomes. These games engage children in problem-solving, reasoning, and analytical thinking, boosting their cognitive skills while having fun.
Sensorial Play Engages the Senses for Cognitive Growth
Sensorial play, involving sensory experiences like sand play, water play, or exploring different textures, stimulates cognitive growth. Children engage their senses and develop observation skills as they explore the properties of different materials. They learn to categorize objects based on texture, weight, or temperature, enhancing their ability to classify and differentiate. Sensorial play supports cognitive development by strengthening neural connections and fostering cognitive flexibility.
Montessori toys for 2-year-olds are excellent resources for sensorial play, aligning perfectly with their cognitive development needs. These toys are designed to engage multiple senses, allowing children to explore various textures, shapes, and sizes. Toys such as sensory balls, shape sorters, and puzzles provide opportunities for children to strengthen their observation skills, practice fine motor control, and develop problem-solving abilities. With these toys, children enhance their cognitive growth as they categorize objects based on texture, weight, or temperature, promoting their ability to classify and differentiate, all while enjoying a fun and enriching play experience.
Outdoor Play Enhances Cognitive Skills and Physical Development
Outdoor play not only benefits physical development but also plays a significant role in cognitive growth. Outdoor environments provide rich sensory experiences, diverse stimuli, and opportunities for exploration. Children engage in active play, developing gross motor skills, coordination, and balance. They also encounter new challenges, problem-solving situations, and social interactions, stimulating cognitive development. Outdoor play fosters creativity, critical thinking, and adaptability, contributing to holistic cognitive growth.
Guided Play Facilitates Cognitive Development through Supportive Engagement
Guided play involves adults or educators providing structure, guidance, and support during playtime. This approach promotes cognitive development by scaffolding children’s learning and encouraging deeper engagement. Adults can pose open-ended questions, offer suggestions, and provide additional resources to enhance cognitive thinking. By actively participating in guided play, adults foster language development, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills while nurturing cognitive growth.
Play holds tremendous potential for nurturing cognitive development in children. Whether through imaginative play, construction play, games and puzzles, sensorial play, outdoor play, or guided play, children engage in experiences that foster cognitive growth.
As educators and parents, we have the chance to foster a culture that values play and all of its cognitive advantages. We can unleash the full potential of children’s minds by embracing play as an important instrument for cognitive development, encouraging their cognitive capacities, and putting them on a route to success and lifelong learning.
About the author: Stella van Lane is a mum of three, and a passionate writer, in love with coffee, interior design, and books. She is also a dedicated Mental Health Advocate and has been actively involved in raising awareness about mental health issues and promoting mental well-being.
My blog is all about never judging any other parent. We are not perfect. Research has proven human beings react in a certain way, to conflict. It’s an automatic process and sometimes we can’t help it! However, reacting in anger isn’t helpful in the moment.
Our small humans need us to be emotional support. They need us to be more emotionally intelligent, so we can set a great example of how to manage our emotions.
However, I know very well, parenting is the hardest job in the world. If you follow me on TikTok you will see that I try to make light of the situation and use humour to get through the difficult days.
Quick note: Some of the links contained on this page are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. I only recommend products I use myself and think would be useful for other people.
What is gentle parenting?
The goal of gentle parenting is to raise confident, independent and happy children through empathy, respect and understanding, and setting healthy boundaries. This parenting style focuses largely on age-appropriate development.
Some people misunderstand gentle parenting and believe it is too soft as a parenting technique. It’s important to say that as a family, we enforce boundaries. We do also use some rewards, but never punishment. Recently we’ve started adopting natural consequences instead of punishment.
Gentle parenting does not equal a lack of boundaries – quite the opposite. We explain why there are boundaries and use the lessons we’ve taught her, to enforce why we will not tolerate certain behaviour.
The reality of gentle parenting
Gentle parenting isn’t easy. It takes time to become conscious of your reactions – but seeing the results of an emotionally intelligent child is worth it.
If you’re considering implementing gentle parenting, or elements of it like we do. I wanted to let you know about some of the benefits we have experienced since implementing this parenting method.
Let’s dive into the benefits we’ve experienced
We have a very polite child
Since being a baby, we’ve taught my little one to say please and thank you.
At four years old, she now thanks me for simple tasks like getting her cereal in the morning. It’s a genuine, heartfelt thank you. Simply because she’s been shown the reason why we need to be polite.
Everything we teach her is explained in a way she is able to understand. Rather than telling her what to do, it’s a collaborative conversation. You will always hear us asking her whether she understands. And we talk more if she doesn’t.
It’s important for children to understand the consequences of their behaviour and ultimately, be able to eventually regulate emotions by themselves. I won’t be there on her first day of school, or for her first job interview – you have to think about preparing a child for life’s challenges.
Ask yourself – how do I want my children to act and cope in future life situations that could be stressful?
She talks about her feelings & is in tune with other people’s feelings
Because we talk about our emotions and we are honest about the reasons when we do argue (newsflash – all adults argue at some point& sometimes, it’s inevitably in front of children). She, therefore, understands that even adults face situations where something can anger and upset them. That this is okay. And it’s good to talk about how we are feeling when this happens.
When she is experiencing a certain emotion or challenge, we regularly empathise and explain adults also feel this way. Or relate to something we went through as a child.
She regularly comes to me and explains something is wrong. Granted, at four years old, she says things like “I have a sicky tummy” when she’s nervous about the nursery, or feeling tired. But it’s enough for me to know as a parent, that more conversation is needed.
When I was going through my mental breakdown, she was only a baby. But she knew something was wrong and would comfort me.
We now witness this kinder side when she’s in the playground and a baby is upset. She will go over to the parent and child, in a concerned manner, and wait patiently until the baby is okay. It’s really lovely to watch.
Being taught to be kind and caring has helped, but actually being shown that by everyone around her models this behaviour, is a more powerful tool.
She apologises when shes aware of doing something wrong
When a child is in the middle of a meltdown and making no sense, there is no point in having a conversation. It just will not be productive. The same applies to adults. As an adult, you would walk away from a heated conversation. Therefore, it baffles me that some parents believe anger and harsh discipline is appropriate in these situations – surely it’s just unproductive at that moment in time. No progress can be made when a human being is in fight or flight mode.
As parents, we allow the meltdown to pass. We openly tell her, we will talk when she’s calmer and let her walk away. Usually to her bedroom. Within 10 minutes she comes back to us to give a heartfelt apology. And we all talk about why the behaviour wasn’t helpful. Then we make a point of moving on, by saying “Nothing more will be said about it“. We never dwell on it. We move on.
She is independent
As part of our gentle parenting journey, we allow as many choices as we safely can for our toddler.
She is a very independent child by nature. And rather than fight a battle on menial topics, it’s easier to allow as many small choices as we can. The ones we use frequently, involve a choice of dilute juice, and breakfast options and we also allow her to choose her own snacks from the fridge.
When we go out for the day, this extends to more varied options. And when we can, she is allowed to run free and actually be a child.
The amazing thing is, that having allowed choices, she now asks me before she makes any of them. In our case, allowing choices means we get cooperation and communication in return.
Final thoughts
I hope you enjoyed reading about our experiences with gentle parenting.
Are you a gentle parent? do you have any tips for us? or do you use other parenting techniques?
I would love to hear from you in the comments below.
Resources – if you want to get started on your gentle parenting journey:
#duet with @Andrew Shaw | Executive Coach #toddlertantrum Wise words! I will never judge any #parent – we are #notperfect & human beings react in a certain way, to conflict. It’s an automatic process & sometimes we can’t help it! However, this isn’t helpful in the moment. Our small humans NEED us to be an #emotional support ❤️ it takes time to become concious of your reactions – but seeing the results of an #emotionallyintelligent child is worth it! #parents#parenting#mums#mumlife#gentleparenting
When it comes to raising confident kids, there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Every child is different, and what works for one might not work for another. That said, there are a few general tips that can help any parent raise a confident child. This blog post will discuss the most important tips for doing just that!
1) Encourage Independence:
Parents should strive to provide their children with opportunities to make decisions and do things independently. This will help them become more confident in their own abilities, as well as gain a better understanding of how the world works.
2) Celebrate Accomplishments:
It’s important for parents to celebrate their children’s successes, no matter how small. Doing so helps kids understand that accomplishments are something to be proud of, which will give them confidence when it comes time to tackle harder tasks in the future.
3) Praise Effort Over Results:
Most parents praise their kids when they get good grades or win a race. However, it is just as important – if not more so – to praise the effort and hard work that went into achieving those results. Doing this will help kids understand that there is value in trying, regardless of the outcome.
4) Encourage Healthy Risk-Taking:
Parents should foster an environment where their children feel comfortable taking risks and attempting new things. This could be anything from trying a new sport or musical instrument or even just speaking up in class. Taking healthy risks can help a child build confidence as they learn to trust their own judgement.
5) Model Confidence:
Children watch and learn from their parents more than they realize, so it’s important for parents to model confident behaviour. If you want your kids to be self-assured, make sure you are too. Show them how to be confident in uncomfortable situations, and don’t forget to praise yourself for your successes!
6) Have Realistic Expectations:
Parents should strive to set realistic expectations for their kids. This means being realistic about the amount of time it takes for a child to learn something or accomplish a goal, as well as not expecting children to achieve perfect results all the time. Doing this can help kids understand that mistakes are normal and nothing to be ashamed of.
7) Be Positive:
It’s important for parents to remain positive while raising their kids. Negative reinforcement can have an adverse effect on a child’s confidence, so always try to focus on the positives when providing feedback.
8) Give Opportunities to Develop Skills:
Providing kids with opportunities to develop their skills and learn new things is key when it comes to building confidence. This could be anything from signing them up for a sports team or art class, swim lessons, or simply giving them age-appropriate chores around the house.
9) Normalize failure:
Every child will face failure at some point in life, so it’s important for parents to normalize this experience. Remind your children that mistakes are an opportunity to learn and grow, not something they should be ashamed of. This will help them become more resilient and confident in the face of adversity.
10) Gentle parenting:
Gentle parenting is important for helping kids build confidence. This means responding to their feelings with empathy and understanding, using positive reinforcement, avoiding power struggles, and being mindful of their individual needs.
While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to raising confident kids, these tips can help parents provide their children with the tools they need to become more self-assured. With proper guidance and support, children can learn to trust in themselves and their abilities, which will set them up for success in life.
When you have kids, your social life takes a back seat. There are simply not many opportunities to meet potential new friends who are also parents. But being a single parent doesn’t mean you can’t make friends. As a single parent, it’s even more important to have support and company because the responsibilities of taking care of your kid alone can be pretty challenging at times. That being said, as a single parent, you probably don’t have much time to go out and meet people regularly. You might be worried about how to meet people as a single parent – especially if you don’t know many other single parents in your area already. However, this is precisely why I am writing this blog post for you!
Here are 5 tips on how you can meet new people as a single parent:
Join clubs for children or families
There are lots of clubs and meet-ups for parents in all areas. Look for clubs in your area that are related to the interests of your child or family (e.g. a playgroup, a parent-teacher association, a school club, a chess club for children, a reading group for parents and kids, a yoga class for parents and kids, a sports club where your kid can participate, etc.). You can also search online for clubs in your area that are open to all people, and not just families. This will give you a chance to meet lots of parents who have interests similar to yours. You can also join clubs for single parents. Starting a club of your own is also an exciting option if you can find like-minded people.
Join online forums for parents
There are also forums for parents. Some are more general, while others are more specific to a particular area of interest. It’s a good idea to do some research and find out which online forums for parents might be related to your interests. There are many places you can find like-minded parents or other single parents who can offer support, such as singleparents. org, Gingerbread, or other sites such as Mumsnet.
Try internet dating
If you’ve been thinking about trying online dating, this is the perfect time! Meeting new people through online dating can be significant and help you develop new interests and hobbies. You can also meet other single parents through online dating. If you’re worried about how to meet people as a single parent, dating websites can be an excellent way to get started. In the first instance, you only need to meet people if you’re ready to, as you can communicate via the app. While there are many horror stories about online dating and people being scammed, there are also success stories; you need to be careful and always trust your instincts when talking to new people or sharing real-life details of who you are and where you live.
Be active in your local community.
Another good idea on how to meet people as a single parent is to be active in your local community. This can be an excellent opportunity to meet people with your interests. If you have time, consider volunteering for an organisation in your community that interests you. This can be a great way to meet like-minded people, and it can also be a great way to make your child proud.
From helping out at local churches, homeless initiatives or community centres and organising local events or meet-ups, you can find people to talk to, a new friendship group and even find something you enjoy doing that benefits your mental health, your family life and your social life too.
Take up a new hobby
Last but not least, you should also take up a new hobby. Hobbies are a great way to meet people. Depending on the hobby you choose, you might meet other single parents this way, or you might meet people who don’t have children. Regardless, hobbies are a fun way to make new friends. Think about what you really want to learn and then find local classes or clubs that engage in this. It could be as simple as joining a gym to get fit and healthy, learning a language or taking evening classes online to help forward your career or boost your credentials.
Conclusion
Being a single parent can be challenging, but it doesn’t mean you can never meet new people again. You can make friends as a single parent; it just takes a little effort. The above 5 ways to meet people as a single parent should help you get started.
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