We all know the importance of being resilient in life, so it’s only natural for us to want to help our children build up their resilience.
Why is resilience so crucial for children to build? It’s simple—resilience helps them learn how to bend and not break when facing stress or trauma. Resilience is how they’ll know the best ways to get up and brush themselves off after a fall and recover from adversity and stress.
Kenneth Ginsburg, a pediatrician who specializes in adolescent medicine at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, has identified the seven “C’s” of resilience: competence, confidence, connection, character, contribution, coping and control.
So how do you go about helping your kids begin building that resilience? Keep the seven “C’s” in mind and try these seven tips!
- Focus on relationships.It may seem that resilience is built on self-reliance, determination or inner strength, but it’s the relationships in kids’ lives that gives them a strong foundation. Children need to have at least one supportive relationship with a caring adult—from a parent to teachers or coaches.
- Remind them that it is OK to ask for help.Knowing how to take care of things on their own is an important life skill, but even the most resilient know when to ask for help. Be sure to reiterate to your kids that it’s OK to ask for help, and that it is actually a fantastic way to demonstrate their strength.
- Teach the importance of exercise.Do you exercise to help relieve stress? If so, why not inform your kids of its benefits? The key is to get them moving and teach them healthier ways to handle stress.
- Model it for them.You already know the kids watch your every move, so be sure they are seeing resiliency in you! They need to see how you handle disappointment and sadness. They need to see how you bounce back and move on to the next situation.
- Limit rescue mode when possible.You are the parent, and it’s only natural to want to rush in and rescue your children the moment they seem over their head. This is a noble thing to do but swooping in for every little thing is doing them a disservice. Give your kids the time and resources to sort things out for themselves when appropriate.
- Boost their problem-solving skills.Do your kids know how to work through a problem themselves? There are different things they can ask internally, such as “what has worked before?” or “how can this problem be broken into smaller pieces?”
- Make time for creativity and play.This one might be our favorite! Being creative can help your children come up with valuable problem-solving skills. Allowing them the time to think things through can give them the chance to get creative where solutions are involved.
Drama Kids International provides children with a place to think outside the box, be creative and embrace who they are. We welcome the opportunity to play a role in helping your kids build up their resilience and have specially tailored programs to accomplish this.
Looking for more information on our programming? Contact us today! www.dramakids.com