Self-Reliance is important for children. Learning to be self-reliant is important to be taught when a child is at a young age so it can develop, as they grow older. Being self-reliant is presented to be the ability to take control over your life, being motivated from within, and being able to take care of yourself. Starting when a child is young it is important to not do everything for them. Gradually hand them tasks to complete making it known that they have the power to be independent. By teaching a child to be independent, as they grow older it will develop personal skills beneficial to their growth.
Teaching self-reliance is not going to be a result of the education from schools it begins at home. Parents should understand that this concept comes strictly from at-home instruction. A child’s parent is the role model for this type of behavior because children are watching every move their parents make. One major mistake that occurs through parents teaching this trait to their children is not giving them enough freedom or giving them too much freedom. By parents not giving children enough freedom, the results of it can have some major effects. The first problem that may occur will be they may begin to have a loss of self-confidence resulting in depending on their parents for everything. On the other hand, giving a child too much freedom at a young age may result in them being insecure about his or her own abilities. The child may think you do not trust them to do things on their own.
Parents often are not encouraging their children to do things on their own. It occurs that they seem to find it frustrating to delegate and teach tasks to their children. But those who are not delegating simple tasks to their children are actually hurting them. Begin with easy tasks that as a parent you know they will be able to achieve, and upon completing praise them for their accomplishments. This shows them that they have done something good and are capable of doing things on their own without help. Some simple tasks that you can assign to them are things such as cleaning their room, putting their dish in the sink when done eating, and arranging their toys neatly. These simple tasks can be built up into more difficult tasks as children get older and become more self-reliant.
Do not force your children to do things that they are not good at. This will end in them becoming frustrated and losing self-confidence in their abilities. Present children with significant choices, allowing them to pick the tasks that they are good at versus those they struggle with. The principle of choice is important to introduce when a child resists a demand from the parent or behaves inappropriately. These choices should both be positive and acceptable give the pros and cons for both letting them know only once can be chosen. Making a decision is important for a child, showing that they are able to choose between options is a way to let them know they cannot always have everything.
Links:
http://www.parents-space.com/teaching-your-child-self-reliance/
http://www.brainy-child.com/article/self-reliant-tips.shtml
