How do you give preschoolers the skills they need to navigate life’s trials? How do we help them find the words to describe their emotions? Join us today to learn how to help our children gain responsibility for their own emotional well-being so they can find strength and power knowing they have the skills to handle whatever life throws at them.
Becky Goddard-Hill has three wonderful books about kindness and self-soothing for kids. Stay with us in this episode to hear more about how developing kindness and resiliency in a child makes all the difference!
Kindness is a Superpower
By writing three children’s books about kindness, Becky has created an effective and engaging manual that teaches kids emotional strength. Although the books are meant for kids between 6 to 12 years of age, younger children can use them with the supervision of an adult. Her books are filled with pleasant visual pages and simple exercises that center around kindness.
So why is kindness an important value to nourish in children?
One in six children in Britain and in the USA have mental health issues. That is an alarming rate, considering that we always think that only adults have ample reasons to have them and that children are “always fine”.
With the pandemic still keeping everyone locked in their homes, children remain isolated in their rooms and home-schooled when they are used to running free outside. We can’t ignore emotional health of children as it may spell a deeper kind of trouble in their teen years!
If we can teach children to become kinder to themselves, we teach them to know how to self-soothe. The danger of the absence of self-soothe is that self-harm replaces it eventually as they grow up. This is when children and teenagers are not able to cope with issues and they become too fragile later in life.
Teach your children to be kind to themselves and make them realize that they are their own best friend. It is so important to instill this to them!
Self-soothing Goes a Long Way
Why do kids need to self-soothe and how do they do it?
Kids need to be verbally assertive. When they discover the magic of emotional language, they would develop a habit of saying how they feel calmly rather than display it turbulently.
As parents, we are to be role models of this emotional skill. We need to show them that we can see their emotions and make it clear that we are ready to hear what they want to say.
Kids have bad days, too! Imagine if you’ve been looking for your keys for an hour and by the time you find it, you’re already so agitated that you’re ready to throw the keys and burst in frustration. But as most adults are able, we tend to just breathe deeply, let out a little scream, and let it go.
Kids, however, only know the throwing part.
By teaching them a rich language of feelings, we can encourage them to express their emotions in a healthy way instead of being always aggressive.
Get Becky’s Books!
Becky’s books are centered on self-kindess, kindness to others, and kindness to our world. The books teach them to learn to be kind to themselves, be kind to others, and to be aware that no matter how little they are, they can do something to contribute to their community.
Additional Resources:
- Get Becky’s books: https://amzn.to/2NrbXkT
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