An affirmation is anything you say or think about yourself. Thus, our self-talk, whether negative or positive, are affirmation in itself.
Children are sensitive beings. Whatever is fed to them, they will devour. Think of powerful words you can say to your child, these words can reap its meanings for it to manifest.
When kids are likely to say and think negative things about themselves, they will need to re-establish their brains to think more positively. They can do this through practicing positive affirmations for self-esteem and confidence. This will not be an easy task for them, as they are more used to their old approach, however, upon constructing a daily schedule for your affirmation program, everything will be easy, rather, an enjoyable activity.
Positive affirmations are statements designed to build self-confidence through changing negative self-talk. These affirmations for self-confidence or self-esteem make children feel good about themselves and help them embrace their positive qualities and adapt to new beginnings.
In order to understand how our affirmation cards work, we need to know a bit about our brain. The brain has centralized control over all the other organs in our body. It is constantly sending and receiving messages to help our body function properly.
Since our brain processes all this information, it absorbs everything we say and think literally. The brain doesn’t distinguish between real and what is not. This is why, for an example, a horror movie frighten some people even though they know it is not real.
Therefore, when kids repeat positive affirmations for self-esteem, their brain receive it as a truth. Even if they haven’t fully internalized and owned the positive statement.
The early and middle childhood phase of a child mould and shape their self-esteem. If a child experiences any form of abuse, bullying or overly critical authority figures, for example, their self-esteem can be hugely impacted. This can make them more susceptible to mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, emotional trauma, insecurities and eating disorders as they get older.
As children‘s mind are more malleable and easier to guide, I suggest that we start them young and with basic and simple affirmation words like a child’s play but with a meaningful approach to life as they approach it: “I can do tricky things”, I can solve a tiny problem by my own”, I will play hard and win the game.”, etc. These are basic words for children and what their life revolves at the moment – mundane and simple child-stuff but big in their own kind of world.
Let us also keep in mind that communication is key to introducing affirmations to kids. When introducing this to your children or students, it is better to engage them by developing a friendly relation, a confidante, a listener and someone that kids can honestly entrust their whole persona to.
Take note also that an ideal teacher is patient. Being patient is often expressed as being diligent or persevering. Patience is required for employing carefully individual teaching - for individual learner.
