As parents and caregivers, our goal is to see our children happy, healthy, and safe. We know that one way to help them achieve this is by protecting and nurturing their mental health. Mental health plays a role in physical health, self-esteem, and self-confidence. Therefore, it’s important that we start early to help our children develop a growth mindset and use positive self-talk. Positive thinking is a powerful tool that can have a significant impact on your health and well-being.
It can help you to manage stress, overcome challenges, and make better choices. Everyone can benefit from improving their positive thinking and self-talk skills! The premise is that by changing your thinking, you can control your emotions and your actions. Positive affirmations for kids involve using positive self-talk and affirmations to remind yourself of positive thoughts throughout the day. This is especially important for kids and young adults, who can benefit greatly from learning to think more positively.
Children of all ages can sometimes get caught up in negative thinking patterns and self-talk. However, teaching them early on how to identify and interrupt these thoughts can be very helpful. Focusing on self-love and positivity can help them carry these approaches throughout their lives. When kids start to think more positively, they learn to believe in themselves and their abilities and work towards achieving their full potential.
How To Practice Affirmations with Your Kids
First, decide which affirmations you would like to say out loud together. Make this a joint exercise. Allow the child to have a greater say in this. Each child may need different affirmations because what one child needs to hear may be different from another. For example, a teen who is shy may need different affirmations than a toddler.
- Practice in front of the mirror. Eye contact is an extremely powerful tool when it comes to affirmations. Stand in front of the mirror with your child and look at your reflections. You can take the lead by saying your affirmations out loud and asking your child to repeat them. Once they get a hang of it, both of you can say them together.
- You can also make a practice of doing affirmations with eye contact. Encourage your child to look you in the eye and repeat after you. For kids who need help calming down, eye contact along with affirming words can help quite a bit.
- Another great way to do positive affirmations for kids is by creating flashcards. This is a fun activity to do together and it has the added benefit of reinforcing the affirmation in their mind. Plus, they’ll get some reading practice in too!
No matter how you plan to do affirmations, make them a habit and part of your routine. You can do them while you’re getting ready for bed, or even while you’re dropping your kids off at school. Whatever works for you! Just make sure to find a way to fit them into your life.
Positive Affirmations You Can Teach & Practice with Your Kids
Here are some affirmations for kids you can practice with your children. You can even tailor them to things or ideas you know your children are struggling with.
- I am unique and special.
- I am hard-working and can achieve all that I want to.
- I can be kind to myself and kind to others.
- Sometimes I make mistakes but I choose to learn from them.
- I can make a difference in my world.
- There is no one else in the world quite like me.
- My confidence grows when I step outside of my comfort zone.
- I can take it one step at a time.
- You can always feel comfortable sharing your thoughts, ideas, and feelings.
- I am courageous even when things are unknown to me.
You can encourage kids to create positive self-talk by looking into a mirror and saying affirmations out loud. You can also have different categories of affirmations to help kids address specific issues, like healthy boundaries, self-worth, and kindness. The most important thing is to make it part of a regular routine. Keep it short, sweet, and simple so kids are more likely to stick with it.
At Kosh, we aim to bring up a happier future generation by helping their parents learn the best ways to nurture their kids. Our positive parenting program includes various masterclasses, one-on-one workshops, webinars, printables, and more. Learn more by availing of a 1:1 session with our world-renowned parenting experts today!
