You might have been one of those parents who looked at your child’s developmental milestones like a hawk when they were a baby. There are so many instances when our children start to form words, pull themselves up, and achieve many other little milestones up to the age of three. But there are also so many other milestones in our kids’ lives all the way up to their teenage years and beyond that we must recognize as being habit-forming and foundational to their overall development. Here are a few major ones that we should be there for them every step of the way.
Riding a Bike
Balance is one of those things that are critical, not just for avoiding injury as a child, but it provides a solid foundation for everyone as we get older and is vital to our overall flexibility and posture. Getting balance bikes for your toddlers will always ensure that they don’t just learn how to ride a bike, which will arm them with confidence, but it will also help them to stay in touch with their natural center of gravity.
It’s something that we can all lose as we get older, especially when we feel like we don’t want to go riding on our bikes, but it is one of the best exercises out there and we should firmly encourage this in our kids.
Learning the Right Way
Something that we don’t necessarily consider, but we’ll see around the age of six or seven when they start to read with confidence that we can capitalize on this skill by encouraging reading.
However, it’s also important to remember that they may not have the ability to learn or retain information like their classmates. But this is where helping them uncover their learning style and helping them harness this skill will provide them with the confidence to progress in education and in life.
Developing Their Confidence
There can be times when our children don’t have any sense of confidence in who they are, and it’s at this point that we must address this because if they are allowed to stew in these feelings, it can be challenging for them to break out of, but we can also find ourselves getting frustrated at our children because they’re not snapping out of it. The answer is about making sure that they are getting out of their comfort zones gradually so they fall back on their innate instincts that will make them feel that they’re able to utilize their confidence in the face of a bully.
Something like martial arts is an obvious fit here because it allows our children to step out of their comfort zone, especially if they’re not taking part in any other sports, but it also becomes part of an amazingly supportive environment that doesn’t just build physical strength but allows them to feel far more confidence in their abilities, which they will take throughout their entire lives. Martial arts are one of those things that every child should have under their (black) belt, purely for the confidence factor.
These milestones are not necessarily so obvious, but we must recognize that when they need support and we help them overcome these, they will be far more confident children and we can let them fly.
