Hi,
Young minds are very fragile and fickle. Their tender minds tend to respond very quickly
to the world around them. They react in a proactive manner to any events that might likely
to hurt or embarrass them. Such events act on their minds in an adverse manner. Negative
feedbacks, stereotypic opinions on their intelligence, appearance and looks could be potentially
very disastrous on a child's self-esteem, self-confidence and self-image.
Just sometime back, a YouTube video created quite a stir in the cyber world. When a young girl
posed a very sensitive question in her video, the entire world, which watched it, was truly
stunned and shocked! Thousands of viewers who watched the video simply could not answer the
girl's simple, yet intriguing question - “Am I pretty or am I ugly?”
A shocking question at that, it is quite sad nevertheless! Her sincere and honest question
poses many critical questions than simple answers. However, it is a classical example of a
innocent child who is most probably experiencing negative self-esteem. In addition, her shocking
video is also opening up the debate on both good and bad parenting and in what manner negative
parenting is leading to instances of declining self-esteem in our children. All the best!
Thought for today:
"When people believe in themselves, they have the first secret of success. " - Norman Vincent Peale
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Feature Articles
Developing Your Child's Self-Esteem
A child is a mirror image of his or her own mind. Self-esteem is what makes your child.
Self-esteem is an important personal trait that plays a critical role in your child's
mental development.
Q1: I have twins age 6. A girl and a
boy. My daughter is extremely smart almost on a third grader reading
level and she is in the first but she still thinks as a 6 yr old.
She loves school. Her brother on the other hand has stated he
doesn't like school but is super intelligent, purposely does only
enough to keep him from getting in trouble or failing but thinks
like someone twice his age. He understands the concept of
segregation. When our home burnt down his sister was more fascinated
by the fire trucks where he was more upset about where we were going
to live. Sometimes I feel that he is more bored with school, should
I have him tested for a gifted program?
A: I believe that both your kids have
above average abilities and are potentially gifted; though your son
shows more signs of some emotional concerns that are distinct to a
gifted child. They are just a little different from one another and
gender could possibly play a part apart from the personality make up.
Your son appears to have a deeper sense of emotional intensity as
compared to your daughter. The higher the cognitive and intellectual
component, the high the emotional intensity..... Continue to read Dr. Sandhu's answer on
Emotional Intensity and Testing for a Gifted Programme here.
Q2: My son is 4 years old. He is very
close to his grandpa, with whom he spends most of his time. When he
was a little over 2 years old, he started playing with bricks that
were left over from our home renovation, supervised by my dad. When
I came to see what he had been up to, I was astonished. He had built
an entire colony of houses, with each one of them having a separate
entrance and a lawn...
A: The description that you gave about
your son is simply amazing. Doing what he did at such a young age
indicate very high ability and he is gifted for sure. You need to
now monitor his progress further and provide him with appropriate
learning activities to cater for his curious mind.... Continue to read Dr. Sandhu's answer on
Highly Advanced Development here.
Q3: I have a 9 month old daughter. Her
brother is believed to be gifted, but his sister has a different
father. Can you tell at such a young age if they are gifted? She
held her head up since birth, and very alert, even tracking
practically since birth as well. At about 3-4 month in a week's time
we realized if we held her hands, and said, "up," she knew that as a
cue to go up.....
A: It is a little hard to tell for sure
at this age as there is minimal description on the traits. Shared
genes are an influencing factor; hence if her brother is gifted,
there is a possibility that she might be as well. But as I said, it
is hard to tell at this point. A few pointers to help you tell if
your baby is advanced.... Continue to read Dr. Sandhu's answer on
Above Average Development in Infants here.
Many kids struggle with low
confidence. The good news is, Being Me can help kids tackle
everyday challenges and build confidence and self-esteem.
This handy guide gives kids the tools they need to explore
their strengths, feel successful, and be confident in
school, with friends, and importantly, with themselves.
Loaded with kid-relevant examples and easy-to-do tips and
tricks, Being Me will empower kids to feel happier and more
secure and confident with themselves and with everyone else
in their lives.
In Parent Talk, a must-have for every parent with a preschool to high school-age
child, Chick Moorman tells you what to say so that you can communicate more effectively
-- and peacefully -- with your child in every circumstance.
Do you find yourself in those maddening situations where you sound like a broken record
when talking to your child? Your preschooler won't decide what she wants to wear,
regardless of how many times you insist that she just choose; your struggling third
grader says "I can't do math," and your "Sure you can!" reassurance falls like a dead weight
A recent study at the Early Emotional Development Program of the Washington University
School of Medicine has shown that early emotional support and nurturing helps increase
the rate of brain development in young children.
New research has caused controversy by suggesting that, in fact,
dairy food could be essential for a healthy brain. The study, by
U.S. and Australian researchers, involving 1,000 adults, found those
who regularly have dairy products such as milk, cheese and yoghurt
score better on tests of mental ability than people who never, or
rarely, consume dairy.
The ways in which parents engage with their children at age two predicts their children's
future academic outcomes, according to results from a 15 year study.
Play can be characterized as any activity in which your child has fun; is uncomplicated
and without any goals; and is both initiated and controlled by the child. Through this
unstructured play, children are introduced to many different concepts of learning
- such as math, reading, writing and social.
For many kids, the most important years of schooling come before they can even read. Consider
the groundbreaking work of the Nobel Prize-winning economist James Heckman, who has repeatedly
documented the power of early childhood education.
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