When you have children, whether it’s one or many, you are responsible for quite a few things. You are obligated to protect them, shelter them, clothe them, feed them, and keep them healthy. Over time, you’ll also be responsible for how they grow as a person. Knowing ways to boost your child’s self-confidence in their early years will pay dividends when they’re teens and adults later.

Help Them Learn Before You Let Them Learn

When your child is trying something new, show them how to do it once. Then, help them with it. After that, you can let them try and do it on their own. That can be hard, because you know they’re going to struggle. In many cases, they might even fail quite a bit. As badly as you want to step in, remember that when you were a kid, you wanted to prove yourself, too. Even if they don’t learn how to do what they’re trying, they’ll always learn from dealing with adversity.

Summer Camp

Summer camp is a great way for kids to learn how to operate independently of their parents and families. Depending on the activities they do, they might also develop confidence in trying new things they’ve never done before. If you’re not sure what summer camps might specifically help them grow in this area, then go to websites describing options in your area that you can choose from.

Praise Them, But Do It Right

Parental praise can go a long way in building confidence in children, but you need to build the confidence right. Praising attributes, such as talent, or concrete results, such as A+ grades, can artificially inflate them or put their confidence in the wrong direction. To establish the right foundation for their confidence, focus on praising the work and effort they put into things.

Be a Great Role Model

Your children will learn more from your example than everything you decide to deliberately teach them. Carry yourself with confidence in your own life, and they’ll mimic that until they figure out how to do it on their own. You’ll both benefit.

You’ll always remember the first time your child stood up on their own and started walking. The first few times they use their self-confidence to stand up for themselves are more subtle, and you might not recognize those moments. Prepare them for it anyway by boosting their self-confidence in any manner possible.