Blog Post

Promoting Independence

Puffin's Pre-School • Jan 03, 2020

Tips for encouraging your child to become more independent

"One of the key skills for life that we want to empower our children with in the early years is independence, both in relation to their actions and their thinking. To become independent, children have to be confident in their own abilities, otherwise they will remain over-reliant on the support of other adults or their more confident peers. Their confidence grows through opportunities to try new things in a safe and supportive environment with lots of positive reinforcement for their success and strategies to support any failures they may have along the way. Young children are on the whole very resourceful and very resilient, and when left to their own devices or given opportunities to be independent they can often surprise us." 

Alistair Bryce-Clegg, Early Years Professional
Here are some great ways in which you can encourage your child to become more independent:
  1. Assign a simple chore. Why don't you ask your child to help you to dust the sides using a cloth? Sweep up the floor? Tidy their toys? Water the plants?
  2. Resist doing what your child is able to do for themselves. Although it is sometimes 'easier' or 'quicker' to do certain things for your child, resist the urge to complete simple tasks that your child is able to do themselves.
  3. Don't re-do what your child has done. If your child has tidied their bed, but it is not quite how you would do it or put their trousers on back to front, resist the urge to redo these jobs for them. Remember to praise what they have done, practise makes perfect!
  4. Let your child solve simple problems. It is very easy for us to provide solutions for simple problems, however, problem-solving is a great skill for children to learn. As long is your child is safe, encourage them to try and solve simple problems for themselves, for example; using a small stool to climb up to reach something. 
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