Developing confidence in the Early Years

Stuck!

Confidence is something you often explore in the Early years as it is fleeting. They master somethings really quickly and others it takes a lot of time. There are so many things that they are learning that it is no wonder that sometimes they just come to a dead halt.

This local park had the best trees for climbing and while on our family walk, my husband and I reflected on our tree climbing fun we had from childhood because there were excellent trees to climb all around.

It wasn’t difficult to encourage the boys to give it a try.

One was up and onto that tree pretty quickly. Feet planted carefully, hand gripping and always looking for the next foothold.

One was up and then gripped the tree for dear life and had to be talked on. He was laughing at his own predicament. He knew but he couldn’t. He wouldn’t let go so we could catch him. He insisted he wanted to go on but refused to let go of one hand or ungrip one leg.

Fear!

I want to say it was all our kind words of “You can do it!” that got him down but it was the kindness of strangers others who were walking by. They said the right words ie. they came from other people.

That gave him the confidence to let go and move………ever so slightly.

Along came another family, popular route, who remarked  to their children, “Look that boy is really going up that tree! I bet you can’t do that.”

We were there a while so the first lady and the dog came back, she’d not gone far up the path. She stopped and spoke to us loudly enough that he could overhear when we were a little anxious trying to talk to her and keep and eye on our clinging on “Koala” son. But it gave him a chance to listen to his own voice.

He uncurled.

He moved up.

We moved on.

Everyday opportunities for play. You don’t always see your role or have to have something ready. Here we were on a family walk.. no learning ‘planned’. We learnt that this particular child no amount of encouragement for the instant performance would work it infact paralyzes him. But leave him a moment and he’ll work it out.

Both are avid tree climbers now much to my hearts complaint. 🙂

Are you that stranger that makes a positive comment that encourages that under 5 child? Would you have walked on in this situation? Unpeeled your “Koala” and moved on?

How have you helped your child’s confidence this week?