Growth and development: Helping your child build self-esteem

What helps a child develop healthy self-esteem?

You can promote your child's development of healthy self-esteem by starting a cycle of belonging, learning, and contributing. A sense of belonging helps a child to participate in learning new things; learning makes a child feel confident in making contributions; making contributions helps secure a feeling of belonging. This cycle helps establish and strengthen a child's self-esteem.

Developing healthy self-esteem is a process that continues throughout life and helps a person act responsibly, cooperate well with others, and have the confidence to try new things.

Test Your Knowledge

1. Self-esteem involves how a person sees himself or herself.

1. True
2. False

2. Which of the following are involved in helping your child develop healthy self-esteem? (There may be more than one correct answer.)

1. Helping your child feel that he or she belongs within the family
2. Helping your child feel that he or she can learn and accomplish things
3. Helping your child feel that he or she can contribute in a worthwhile way

Continue to Why should you help your child develop healthy self-esteem?
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Author:	Jeannette Curtis	Last Updated: April 17, 2008
Medical Review:	Michael J. Sexton, MD - Pediatrics Mina Dulcan, MD - Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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