Harvey Howard is the owner of My Gym Children’s Fitness Center in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. He is a certified special education teacher, elementary teacher, guidance counselor, and student assistance professional located in New Jersey. Here he explains why parents can go about motivating their child with encouraging words, rather than pushing too hard.
Positive reinforcement is really the way to encourage children, rather than pushing too hard and scaring them away. At the same time, however, parents need to stretch the boundaries of what their little ones can achieve. This is very important in their physical and emotional development throughout life.
As a child gets older, parents should continue to stretch the boundaries in terms of challenges that their child is going after and accomplishing. But these expectations as to what can be done for a little one should be like a rubber band—you can stretch the challenges and the goals further out, but if it becomes apparent that the little one isn’t going to be able to achieve a certain goal, then the expectation needs to be brought back in to a more realistic place. And that rubber band can keep being brought in until it is at a level where the child can handle the task or the goal and accomplish it.
When children experience failure, they have the tendency to stop trying. They will just lose interest in whatever is going on. So it is in your interest, as well as theirs, to stretch out that rubber band, and if they can do the skill, great. You will congratulate them and be proud. But if it looks like they aren’t going to be able to handle it, then you keep bringing that rubber band back in until you are at a level where it is something that they can accomplish. Rather than deeming them a failure, allow them to have success. That is what encouragement as a parent is all about.
Common Mistakes
The most common mistake I see parents making is trying to push their kid way too hard to achieve something that they haven’t been prepared for. Developmentally, there is a good chance they may not be there yet, especially if they haven’t gained the developmental building blocks to get up to that skill.
An example of this at My Gym has to do with the high bar. For a kid, hanging on the high bar is one thing. But if you put a child up into a front hip circle, where he is on the high bar with his hands below them, he may get scared and feel like he doesn’t have the control anymore. This is a confidence issue, because not everyone is ready to do that front hip circle on the high bar just yet.
Instead, parents should let them go on the high bar at their own pace—hold them, let them swing around a little bit, and let them build that confidence until they feel secure without your grasp. Maybe let them put their legs on the bar, hang upside down. When they feel totally confident and supported, they are going to go right up into that front hip circle. But if you push them into it too fast they are going to be too scared and they won’t want to get near that bar in the future.
That’s an analogy that works in so many situations. So parents need to encourage their children and allow them to grow, but avoid pushing them too fast into things they are not ready for. Pushing them will almost always backfire.
About the Author:
Harvey Howard is a writer for Yodle, a business directory and online advertising company. Find an Expert guide or more physical health articles at Yodle Consumer Guide. How to Encourage Children Without Pushing Too Hard
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – How to Encourage Children Without Pushing Too Hard
Praetorian® Rapid Cutaway Ballistic Vest
|
|
Kyjen Fire Hose Tug 'n Fetch with Double Tennis Ball Dog Toy, Red
$7.50 Outer surface is reinforced with multiple tightly woven plies of fabric. Inner core is made of long-wearing smooth synthetic rubber. Firehose material is made for abrasion resistance which we've found to offer added durability for a soft dog toy.... |
|
|
Discovery 1000 King 40% Waveless Waterbed Mattress Replacement for Hard Sided Waterbed Frames. Experience the controlled wave action of the Discovery 1000. The single layer of fiber affords 40% wavelessness with gentle support. This bed is available with 100 mil reinforced corners and tethered fiber in our Discovery Plus line.
$159.00 Vinyl Products offers 4 different 4 product lines and price points for replacement waterbed mattresses for existing hard side water beds. ALL mattresses are made in the USA! The 4 products consist of The Discovery Series, The Discovery Plus Series, The Dreamweaver Series and the Dreamweaver Supreme Series. The Discovery Series offers great quality at an economical price. The Discovery Series featu... |
|
|
Discovery 1000 Queen 40% Waveless Waterbed Mattress Replacement for Hard Sided Waterbed Frames. Experience the controlled wave action of the Discovery 1000. The single layer of fiber affords 40% wavelessness with gentle support. This bed is available with 100 mil reinforced corners and tethered fiber in our Discovery Plus line.
$159.00 Vinyl Products offers 4 different 4 product lines and price points for replacement waterbed mattresses for existing hard side water beds. ALL mattresses are made in the USA! The 4 products consist of The Discovery Series, The Discovery Plus Series, The Dreamweaver Series and the Dreamweaver Supreme Series. The Discovery Series offers great quality at an economical price. The Discovery Series featu... |
|
|
Apple Iphone 3g/3gs Chrome Zebra Skin Snap-On Premium Hard Cover Case with Reinforced Side Impact Protection
$7.49 Apple Iphone 3g/3gs Chrome Zebra Skin Snap-On Premium Hard Cover Case with Reinforced Side Impact Protection. This protector case is custom made for your device. It is made of a high quality plastic that provides great protection for your device. It comes with cutouts that are perfectly designed so that you are able to utilize every function of your phone. This case is perfect for those who want t... |
|
|
Apple Iphone 3g/3gs Chrome Butterfly Flowers on Blue Snap-On Premium Hard Cover Case with Reinforced Side Impact Protection
$7.49 Apple Iphone 3g/3gs Chrome Butterfly Flowers on Blue Snap-On Premium Hard Cover Case. This protector case is custom made for your device. It is made of a high quality plastic that provides great protection for your device. It comes with cutouts that are perfectly designed so that you are able to utilize every function of your phone. This case is perfect for those who want to add some visual flare ... |
|
|
DeFENDER Slim Case for Toshiba Satellite T135-S1310 / T135-S1307 / T135-S1330 - 13.3-inch Laptop - Plush, Protective Interior and Reinforced Outer Design
$39.99 DeFENDER Slim Case for Toshiba Satellite 13.3-inch Laptops Slim, stylish design form meets function in this Plush, Protective Laptop Case for 13.3" Toshiba Satellite T135-S1310 / T135-S1307 / T135-S1330. The outer design is built for function: the thick neoprene pads thoroughly protect against drops, bumps and scrapes. The thick, embossed neoprene is also built for looks: you won't find a design ... |
|
|
Nintendo DS Lite Reinforced Semi-Clear Hard Case
$29.99 Specially designed for Nintendo DS Lite handheld gaming system. Anti-dirt, washable, perfect aesthetics; Reinforced semi-transparent for protection to your Nintendo DS Lite, without adding extra weight and maintain the beutiful exterior of the device.... |
|
|
powerPLUSH Embossed Designer SLIM Case for ASUS UL30A-X5K / UL30Vt-A1 / U30JC-A1 - 13.3-inch Laptop - Plush, Protective Interior and Reinforced Outer Design
$39.99 powerPLUSH Protective Case for ASUS 13.3-inch Laptops Slim, stylish design form meets function in this Plush, Protective Laptop Case for 13.3" ASUS UL30A-X5K / UL30Vt-A1 / U30JC-A1. The outer design is built for function: the thick neoprene pads thoroughly protect against drops, bumps and scrapes. The thick, embossed neoprene is also built for looks: you won't find a design like this anywhere els... |
|
|
Husqvarna 542786773 16 Inch Wet Coring Bit For Reinforced Concrete With Medium To Hard Aggregates And Medium To Heavy Steel Reinforcing, B5400 Series
$989.11 Husqvarna 542786773 16 Inch Wet Coring Bit For Reinforced Concrete With Medium To Hard Aggregates And Medium To Heavy Steel Reinforcing, B5400 Series... |
|
|
Husqvarna 542761208 Millenium HH610 (H1) - 24 (600) x .140 Hand Saw Blade For Heavily Reinforced Hard Concrete Or Hard Brick
$616.16 Husqvarna 542761208 Millenium HH610 (H1) - 24 (600) x .140 Hand Saw Blade For Heavily Reinforced Hard Concrete Or Hard Brick... |
|
|
Hard Working Wheels (Reinforced Hardcover)
$15.15 Shows a variety of trucks and other working vehicles, including a tractor, a school bus, a fire truck, and various kinds of construction equipment, and describes what they do. |
|
|
Hard or Soft (Reinforced Hardcover)
$18.31 Description not available. |
|
|
Duro o blando / Hard or Soft (Reinforced Hardcover)
$14.47 Description not available. |
|
|
Sammy Keyes and the Cold Hard Cash (Reinforced Hardcover)
$18.8 After an old man begs her with his last dying breath to throw away his bundles of cash for him, Sammy Keyes ends up in a dangerous dilemma after she decides to hide the ill-gotten gain in a secret spot in order to keep it for herself. |
|
|
Hard Times (Large Print,Reinforced Hardcover)
$29.65 In the spring of 1892, twenty-one-year-old Arnie Smith enjoyed the footloose freedom of his life as a cowhand despite the Wall Street panic that had brought hard times upon the land. He would have been happier if his financial situation was more sec... |
|
|
Apple iPhone 3G/ 3GS Cloudy Hearts Rhinestone Diamond Protector Case
$13.49 Keep your Apple iPhone 3G/3GS wireless device in new condition with this cloudy hearts design rhinestone diamond protector case. This case is reinforced with hard plastic to protect your device against scratches and scuffs. |
|
|
HTC Droid Incredible Solid Protector Case
$10.49 Give your wireless device maximum protection from scuffs and scratches with the HTC Droid Incredible Solid Protector Case. The reinforced hard plastic case allows full access to the dock connector, charger, side buttons, speaker, microphone and camera. |
|
|
Apple iPhone 3G Animal Design Crystal Case
$8.49 Protect and personalize your iPhone 3G with this animal design crystal case Audio accessory provides protection by preventing scratches Cell phone accessory features hard plastic reinforced to the front edges, sides and back of the phone |
|
|
HTC Droid Incredible Bubble Design Rhinestone Diamond Protector Case
$12.99 This case is reinforced with hard plastic to protect your device against scratches and scuffs. Keep your HTC Droid Incredible wireless device in new condition with this bubble design rhinestone diamond protector case. |
|
|
Carbon Fiber Design Protector Case for Motorola Droid
$9.49 This protector case provides your wireless device the maximum protection against scratches and scuffsCase enables you to keep your wireless device in new conditionThe case's hard plastic is reinforced from the front edges |
