Encouraging Children to Try New Things
Children are eager learners and curious by nature. Combined, these two qualities make encouraging children to try new things an easier endeavour.
Whilst children possess these characteristics, it doesn’t mean you’ll never encounter resistance when introducing new ideas and activities. When that happens, there are strategies you can deploy to effectively overcome any trepidation children may be feeling.
What prevents children from trying new things?
Children, like most adults, fear failure. It can make them hesitate when trying new things. The minute they’re asked to engage in an activity they’ve not tried before, they may become anxious. It’s also not uncommon for children to feel powerless and vulnerable.
If children give in to their fears, they may avoid the unfamiliar. Without the proper encouragement from adults to help them build self-esteem, it’s a pattern that may continue well into adulthood.
What are effective strategies that really work?
Exhausting. Scary. Uncomfortable. Children may be feeling all those things when asked to try something new. Trying new things leads to learning, so we must encourage children and give them the support needed to explore. Here are some effective strategies that really work for getting children to try new things.
Get children in the “not yet” zone
One effective method for conquering that innate fear of failure is to remind children that even if they can’t do it yet, practice makes perfect. Shifting their thinking from “I failed” to “I just can’t do it yet” gives children the encouragement they need to keep trying new things until they master them.
Keep a “bravery” record
Every time a child tries something new — whether they succeed or fail — mark it down in a bravery journal. Simply attempting a task can give children the confidence to keep trying unfamiliar things until they master them all.
Be sure to include drawings and other mementos to help children recall the experience favourably.
Offer praise for small successes
Children, like adults, respond well to praise. How we choose to respond to their attempts at something challenging and new can set the stage for their failure or success.
Don’t wait for them to make it all the way to their goal. Celebrate the small steps along the journey. Every time children make it to a designated milestone in achieving the task, give them positive praise and other encouraging feedback.
Try not to focus too much on what might not have gone right. Accentuate the positive.
Set realistic expectations
The quickest way to get children to refuse to try something new is by setting the goalpost too high. When we strap too much baggage onto children — what we expect of them, what we think of them, how we think they should perform — it can discourage them from even attempting a new task.
How do you take the pressure off? Use some humour. Children respond well to goofiness when we role-model something new for them. If we make it seem like fun, they’re more likely to give it a go.
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