How to make your children feel valued.
Children who feel valued have more confidence and self esteem growing up and are more resilient to what life throws at them. We all want the best for our little ones and the process of making children feel valued starts from day 1. In this post we will share 5 simple things you can do everyday.
When we make eye contact with another human being we are showing them that they deserve our attention. We are giving them our focus and everything else has become secondary. As people, it's how we bond with each other and it triggers the release of the feel good hormone associated with love, oxytocin. This is why making eye contact with our children shows them that we value them and contributes to the bonding process.
Make memories
Memories are more likely to be long lasting if they are build around traditions and activities that you do regularly together that feel good. This will foster memories that make your child feel valued. These activities don't have to be complicated or expensive, they can be simple things like reading books, singing songs, arts and crafts or even attending a regular fun group such as Popcat's!
Showing any kind of affection makes our children feel loved and valued. Hugs however are huge. Like eye contact, when we are engaged in a cuddle for more than 3 seconds we get a rush of oxytocin, the love hormone. This makes us feel good and bonds us to the other person. What better way to help our children feel valued.
It's genuinely so hard to find time when you have small children. There are always so many things on the to do list including cleaning, laundry and cooking. It's easy and completely understandable to get caught up in all these tasks and find it tough to stop and give your child complete attention. Having this time makes a real difference on how valued they feel though which is why setting up regular, scheduled time can help. Also consider getting out the house so that you are far away from distractions.
The power in their name
A name is a significant part of someone's identity, calling them by their name might seem like a small thing but it really matters. This is why here at Popcat's, our leaders make a point of knowing every single child's name so that everyone who comes feels values in the class.
This is very important to us and is fundamental to our ethos.
If you want to come to a music class for children under 5 where every single child is valued and you get the opportunity to spend quality time with your little one and bond and as you dance, sing and read together, find out where the nearest class to you is.
