Helping Shy Children Gain Confidence

Shyness is present in some individuals throughout life, and this can make everyday activities difficult, and in some cases impossible. Everyone has some level of social anxiety but for most it doesn’t cause any major difficulties. Children have to learn everything from scratch, and how to engage in social situations is one of the biggest things they will learn. For some this is a skill that comes easily, but for others this can pose a big problem and there are many shy children that find day-to-day tasks a struggle. This becomes more evident when they start nursery or school and parents might want to try to help them overcome their shyness. Here are a few things you can do to help your little one come out of their shell.

Plan ahead

Shy children are usually more bothered by new situations or surprises. The key to helping them become comfortable in all different scenarios is to let them know what is going to happen. Start the day by planning what you are going to be doing and talk this through with your child. If at any point they seem a little anxious, then spend more time explaining the intricacies of these parts of the day. There is something that usually makes your child anxious but is unavoidable then try some scenario planning to come up with a plan for tackling these situations as and when they arise.

Role-play

Talking things through can really help shy children, but it can be a bit of a dull way to help them, especially for younger children. A great way to combine play and instill confidence is to do a bit of role-play. Often shy children are more confident when they are pretending to be someone else, and may feel better able to communicate in an alter ego. Making this fun is easy, use props and costumes to make it a bit more real and use the game as a platform for your child to come out of their shell. Why not take a look at the range of fancy dress from George at ASDA for some inspiration?

Take the pressure off

Kids will often retreat further into themselves when pushed to say things or engage with others. The more you prompt them to interact the more they are likely to clam up and refuse to speak, causing them to become anxious and you to become frustrated. The best way to approach situations that might make your child’s shyness more apparent is to let them take the lead. Engage with other people and don’t make a big thing of it if your son or daughter doesn’t follow suit. If they want to stay by themselves then let them, they may choose to join in and be social once they’ve had the time to assess the situation and they will feel more comfortable doing so if it’s been their choice.

Many children are shy in varying degrees, and it is important to remember that this is just one of the processes involved in them growing up. Shy children do not always grow into shy adults, and by helping them to be a little more outgoing you can make their lives a little less stressful. 

This is a guest post in association with George at ASDA.