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5 ways to teach self awareness to kids

  • 3m guru
  • Jul 19, 2022
  • 0 comment(s)
What is self awareness?
 
Self awareness means understanding your ideas, emotions, values and how those elements influence your behaviour. This self knowledge gives you the ability to measure your strengths and weaknesses accurately while maintaining your confidence, passion and desire for improvement.
 
Why is self-awareness important?
 
Self-awareness is crucial because it allows us to see ourselves as unique individuals and have a deeper inner understanding. We are then free to make changes and build on our strengths while also identifying areas where we can improve. Hence self awareness is the foundation for self discovery.
 
Also, self awareness goes hand in hand with strong emotional intelligence. Self aware people are capable of seeing themselves separate from their problems. They don’t get carried away by the emotional tides of the problems they are facing. This makes them masters of their emotions.
 
Should children be self-aware?
 
Self-awareness encourages kids to reflect on their actions and behaviors. It makes them take a step back and evaluate what others are going through because of their actions. Self-awareness helps children learn from their mistakes, accept criticism, and understand the sentiments of others. 
 
It also nudges them to keep discovering about themselves and their nature. It makes them think deeply about the ‘why’ questions, and understand their life’s purpose. It pushes them to set the right goals that align with their innate nature and pursue them with unwavering focus.
 
 
Self awareness helps kids develop their value system
 
Value system is a set of do’s and dont’s that a person staunchly follows irrespective of environmental pressures. Self aware kids understand their goals, and acquire a set of right values that they should follow to reach them.
 
It also makes them aware of their cravings for unhealthy behaviors that could hinder their progress. It makes them evaluate each action in light of their goals and develop a unique set of values, that helps them flourish.
 
Self-awareness increases confidence
                                      
Self-awareness boosts confidence by allowing kids to manage difficult situations with the understanding that they can handle the emotional reactions that arise during those scenarios.
 
Self-awareness helps in problem-solving
 
When it comes to problem-solving, self-awareness is crucial. People have a tendency to blame their problems on the people around them rather than examine why they are acting in specific ways. Kids will attempt to change such aspects if they are more conscious of themselves.
 
What is the age at which a child becomes self-aware?
 
Children can develop awareness at a much younger age than you might believe. They don't realize what they're feeling or that other people have feelings apart from their own, until the age of five. After that they usually start defining their feelings.
 
How to develop self awareness?
 
Few approaches that help children develop self awareness are listed below:
 
1. Encourage them to have a growth mindset
 
Every child should understand that if they work hard and keep a positive attitude, they can achieve more. Teach kids about the importance of having a growth mindset. Encourage a growth mindset in your kids on a daily basis. This can help them gain confidence and a better awareness of their capabilities.
 
2. Discuss about thoughts, actions and feelings
 
Children should be made to understand how thoughts lead to feelings, which lead to actions, which then lead to more thoughts. Describe  problem scenarios that your children have faced. Discuss how they felt while dealing with them, how and what could have been done better and how they can correct themselves in the future.
 
3. Encourage goal setting
 
Ask your child to pick a meaningful goal and write down the steps they can take to achieve it. Making and analyzing aims and goals provides children with reasons to appreciate their achievements and strengthen their self belief. It makes them to deep dive and find how they should transform to be successful.
 
4. Focus on their unique skills
 
Help children in recognizing their own unique abilities. The act of discovering skills that your children excel at helps them develop a positive self-image. Working to develop their strengths boosts their self-esteem and prepares them for success.
 
5. Engage them in their areas of interests
 
Kids should be given time and guidance to pursue activities that pique their curiosity. Focusing on such areas will make them see their personality traits, personal beliefs, routines and emotions from a different perspective. For example a child who loves playing guitar, might discover that he is nature lover. The natural settings might offer him the inspiration to be more creative in music. This might kick-start a journey or self discovery and inner transformation.
 
Lets sum up…
 
Self awareness is important for emotional well-being and personality. It helps children understand who they are, why they react the way they do, and how to improve themselves. It is the essence for their success. Self-aware people have a strong belief in their ability to attain a goal, and this quality helps kids in achieving success in all aspects of their lives.
 
This article is presented by 3mguru, a self discovery platform for kids to learn foundational skills, emotional skills, develop relevant values and map their skills with a live global ranking system.

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