Sreemoyee Chatterjee
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Written By: Sreemoyee Chatterjee | Published : August 15, 2018 9:24 AM IST
Raising an independent child is a proud thing to do as a parent. You may have neighbours and aunts and in-laws coaxing you to do more for your toddler or teen till you are available to do it. But that's not healthy for your child's future. He or she needs to be responsible, the training for which should begin right from the start. Celebrating 72nd year of India's independence today, here are few tips that may help you make your child independent.
Recognise your child's ability: Encouragement is all your child needs to begin owning up responsibilities. Notice his or her ability, appreciate and inspire him or her to do what he or she can do. Try and avoid using the word 'baby' once they are grown up and no more a baby. That, according to experts, can bother their self-confidence.
Give your child opportunities to work on: Sit with your child and ask him or her what he or she would like to do like eating the breakfast all by herself or brushing his teeth without help. This will increase his or her willingness to try and do more of day to day activity independently.
Set priorities for your child: Always remember to teach your child how to set priorities. Otherwise he or she may get confused and you too may end up in overwhelming him or her with too many responsibilities. Try and make her tackle one job at a time.
Give her the time she needs: In case you are in a hurry, do not discourage her from doing something on her own. Rather, make time and start your day little early. If she takes 10 minutes to comb her hair, give her that time. Do not micromanage her. That's how she will learn it quicker.
Make it playful and negotiate: In case your child is clumsy at the beginning and is not comfortable do go for a negotiation and add some fun. Like ask her to take over the shirt duty and you do the bottoms. That's how your child won't worry but enjoy more.
Do not criticise: Criticism is the last thing you should do. In fact, you should never criticise. Always remember, practise makes everything perfect. So, in case your child spills milk on the first day, do not criticise her. Teach her how to clean it and let her know that it happens to all. This, instead of killing her confidence, will make her eager to learn more.
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