Parenting Tip We Love: Affirmations for Children
You have the wrong Zoom password for online school, the dog needs to go out and your toddler just spilled applesauce all over the kitchen. Lucky for you – self-care is in! It’s all over Instagram, whole shows are dedicated to the topic, and Gwyneth Paltrow has a new reaffirming term for any sticky situation.
We have trained ourselves for this moment and we can pause and breathe before heading back into our hectic day.
While we employ these tools for ourselves, we forget that these same concepts and ideas can be shared with our kids! The way we talk to ourselves influences every aspect of our lives and the best time to start talking kindly to yourself is now! Saying affirmations assigns words to our feelings.
Naming a feeling gives us the strength to root into our own power and know ourselves better. Affirmations also have an outward effect and improve our confidence and self-worth.
Giving your little one these tools as early as possible is a great way to set her up for a life of positivity and a healthy relationship with herself. Think back to when you were little. Was there ever a time you didn’t feel confident in a school subject? Embarrassed by an aspect of your appearance?
Unsure of navigating new experiences or spaces? What if you had the tools then to give yourself a boost of confidence?
Affirmations are simply short phrases that bring you a sense of calm, joy, and encouragement. It’s great to get into the daily habit of saying affirmations to yourself. It’s something new to add to your daily family routine that everyone can benefit from. I like to say affirmations in the morning to help start my day but affirmations can be said any time!
As you start to play with using affirmations daily, you’ll be able to come up with specific phrases that apply directly to your family’s lives. In the meantime, here are some of my favorite affirmations for toddlers to help jumpstart your new habit:
“I am calm.”
“I can learn new things.”
“I can use my voice to get the things I need.”
“I help those around me.”
“I am a good friend.”
“I can do anything!”
“I am the only one of me.”
“I am happy.”
The point of affirmations isn’t to force any specific emotion on your child. Our goal is to celebrate exactly what is inside of your child’s heart and help them learn how to express that.
Your child may be having a grumpy day and not feel like saying that he is happy. Maybe instead you shape an affirmation to help remind him that his emotions are fluid and this mood will pass. “My bad mood will go away like a rainy day.”
Have your child create their own affirmations. Explore and play with the different feelings and emotions you can elicit through words. Being open and honest with your feelings together will help strengthen trust and encourage your child to have a relationship with their own feelings.
There’s no wrong way to do it. Just dive in and have fun getting to know yourself and your child better. “We can create a happier world!”
Photo by Mi Pham on Unsplash
