Five tips to raising confident, independent and accountable children

Filipino-Australian psychologist Jane Versoza shares her tips on how to raise independent children who are confident, accountable and responsible.

Allow kids to be independent, and watch them thrive. Source: Pexels

1. The wonderful me

• Discover the unique abilities and capabilities of the child

• Celebrate the best about the child

• Assist the child to develop the areas s/he may not be really good at

• Provide opportunities for the child to experience things and experiment on things within reasons and with adult guidance and supervision

• Allow the child commit mistakes

• Enhance the child’s understanding of the mistakes committed and utilise those mistakes as stepping stones to learn more and continue learning

2. Don’t compare me

• Each child is unique so avoid comparing them with other children

• Every household is different so avoid comparing your home routine with other household’s routine

3. Secure me

• Everyone needs to feel safe and secure before learning would take place

• Parents should make sure that what they expect from their children to learn is age-appropriate and within the abilities and capabilities of the child

• A child should feel that when s/he does things/chores, s/he won’t be judged and/or punished based on the outcome

• Allow a reasonable amount of time for children to learn

4. Play with me

• Do things together in a fun way

• Integrate fun, learning and bonding together

• Give the child the chance to choose and make decisions

• Allow the child to enjoy what s/he is doing

• It is okay when children don’t do things/chores perfectly at the beginning

• Just allow them to continue doing the tasks, provide constructive feedback in order to develop their confidence until such time that they feel good and confident in doing the tasks

5. Talk to me