Helping Children Develop Good Self-Esteem

Many children and teens spend so much time on social media sites, that their image of themselves and the world around them becomes greatly distorted. The need to be one of the group, wear the correct clothes, and be able to know tech-speak is all important. Somewhere along the way, the usual family functions  become lost. When both parents work outside the home, many kids are left pretty much to themselves. Social media then becomes their world. With all the bullying that goes on in social media, a child's self-esteem can become pretty damaged. If a child has no chores, does nothing to contribute to the family life, their world becomes even more restricted. They expect to be waited on by their parents and also use them as ATM machines. Many kids have no daily chores and are not even expected to keep their own rooms picked up or make their beds. Having daily chores help kids learn how to take care of themselves. Both boys and girls need to know how to make a sandwich, plan a meal, shop, clean, iron and sew. If they don't learn these things, they can  become extremely dependent on others and never really grow up. Chores help develop a good sense of self and good self-esteem. Contributing to the family life is important, because it makes kids feel needed. When I took a history and did a yearly physical examination I always asked what chores the kids were doing. One mother of a teen said "Well, he takes his own shower!" She kept her son very close and as a single parent was devastated when he moved in with a teenage girl. 

Comments

[Kacy]

This is interesting and very informative article