6 Tips For Raising An Independent Child

Monday, September 21, 2020, 18:20

Parents are responsible for raising, disciplining their children, and shaping their children's future. They also want their child to be healthy, safe and successful. But, sometimes parents may help their children too much to protect them from pain, harm, bad experiences, unhappiness, failure and rejections. All parents would want to protect their children but when it becomes excessive, you are turning into an overprotective parent which is hindering your child becoming an independent and self-reliant person [1].

Overprotective parents make everything easier for their children so that they do not have to face much difficulty in their lives. It's important to remember that overprotective parents just like all parents want what's best for their children.

But being an overprotective parent you are stopping your child from being independent and doing things on their own. Here are some tips to make your children independent and self-reliant from a young age.

1. Give responsibilities

Give your child responsibilities at a young age. This will make them more responsible towards their work and help them to be more successful in school and in their life. Start giving your child some household chores depending on your child's age and how dependable and focused they can be. Household chores such as sweeping floors, washing dishes or setting up the table can be given to your child. Giving your children responsibility will not only boost their self-confidence but also their work will be a valuable contribution to their family [2].

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2. Allow your child to make small decisions

You might decide everything for your child like what to eat or what clothes to wear. But, you should allow your child to make his own decisions in smaller things. When children are given the freedom to make their own decisions, they learn to make choices. And this makes them independent in taking bigger and smaller decisions on their own.

3. Allow them to do their own homework

You shouldn't be telling your children what schoolwork they should be doing and when. You should be getting them into the habit of creating a time schedule which includes doing their own homework and studying for tests. Creating timely work habits will let your child learn how to handle their own responsibilities independently and not to rely on parents for school work.

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4. Allow them to make mistakes

Children will fail and make mistakes. Allow them to make mistakes so that they can learn from it and do not repeat the same mistake again. If your child has made a mistake do not scold them, instead tell where did they go wrong and how they can do it better the next time.

5. Teach them to solve problems

If your child is having any problems at school or with friends, guide them to identify the problem and solve the issue. Help your child identify the problem and come up with few solutions, if your child is struggling to come up with ideas. And then help your child identify the positive and negative consequences of each solution and once your child has evaluated the positive and negative outcomes, encourage them to pick a solution to address the problem. This will help your child to learn problem-solving skills and be self-confident in finding a solution to the problems [3].

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6. Teach your child to be an independent thinker

The success of your children depends on how well they think on their own and in what way they come up with solutions from their independent thinking. Encourage your children to get into the habit of thinking about things and forming their own opinions and solutions as this will make them independent.

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Common FAQs

Q. What age should a child be independent?

A. Children should be independent from the age of four years old.

Q. How do I get my 4 year old to be more independent?

A. Make a list of things that your child can do on their own, target priorities, forget about your child being perfect and praise your child when they have achieved something on their own.

Q. What to say to encourage a child?

A. You can use these phrases like ‘I can see you are really trying', ‘Keep on trying', ‘I can see you tried hard', and ‘I appreciate your help', to encourage your child.