SHIPPED WORLDWIDEFive Early Childhood Habits of Successful People
Science-Based Approach to Responsible Parenting
It’s the dream of every parent to raise successful and responsible adults with promising careers and futures. The child’s development in their first years of life greatly affects the outcome of their adulthood. The key is to establish healthy habits that benefit them in their childhood which they bring with them later on in life. Your child’s brain is 90% developed by the time they turn five years old. What you do, as a parent or caregiver, in their first five years of life affects how well they do in their academic years, which, as an effect, determines their success in their careers.
Successful parenting has a lot more science than you think. Raising children with good habits that they learn in their childhood is the foundation for having a solid and promising future ahead of them. We’ve listed down five science-based parenting advice for raising successful children.
- Set a high expectation and habitually remind them
It is often misunderstood that parents should just let “kids be kids”. Contradictory to this, it’s important to know how to set certain boundaries. Setting high expectations is a form of “tough love” in parenting. Be consistent in your messaging, and firmly assert points which you think would be essential for them to learn in their childhood years.
- Praise effort rather than abilities
Children love being praised, they just love the spotlight! Praising is good for them, it’s a boost to their self-esteem and it’s a reward for the good things that they do. However, if you want to raise successful children, praising should be done appropriately. The words of Stanford psychology professor Carl Dweck: praise kids for the effort that they do on things rather than on their innate abilities. Successful parents understand that praising children for the things they work for rather than the abilities that they already have helps them realise the importance of hard work even at a young age!
- Reading is essential for success
Research and studies have proven time and time again the importance of reading to ensure success in life. Establishing a reading habit in the early years of life gives them the advantage that they need to excel in their academic years. Reading improves comprehension, especially when done habitually. Moreover, the habit of reading improves concentration, increases their attention span, and enhances memory retention. This may be one of the more challenging habits to establish, your child will need help from you as they start their reading journey. Choose reading materials that they are interested in like personalised books that feature them as the hero, you can also personalise the character in the book to resemble your child! A study conducted by the National Literacy Trust shows that reading materials with personalised elements improve comprehension by 40%. Reading comprehension is a skill that children need for success in school as well as in life. The sooner you establish their reading habit, the earlier the get the advantages of reading!
- Make them do chores
Studies show that children who pitch in to do chores that benefit the household in their childhood years have a better chance of success. The blog: sparing chores spoil the child and their future self featured a study by Braun Research that shows that only 28% of the parents they surveyed regularly assign chores to their children. Lythcott-Haims also emphasized the importance of assigning roles to the child because the real world will require them to do tasks to be successful. Assigning your child to chores disciplines them and helps them understand the importance of having a profound work ethic and sense of responsibility!
- Children need to be consoled
If you are stuck between consoling a struggling child or just letting them learn to be self-reliant, choose the former. Some parents may think letting the child self-console helps them become more responsible. But, the truth is, children have their own limitations, they need help in understanding their emotions, and that’s why they need your sympathy too. When children are consoled when they face a big challenge, commit a mistake, or find a task too hard for them to handle, they feel comforted that you are there for them. Just showing up and rushing to their side makes a big impact on their mental and emotional development. According to studies, youngsters who go through this as kids are better at adjusting to society as adults.
Reading for Pleasure Affects Academic Success
When children have established a reading habit, reading will come naturally and will become an important part of their life. Reading for pleasure means that the child voluntarily spends time reading, and enjoys the reading experience. Children that read for pleasure anticipate reading time and would spend a good amount of time reading books and other reading materials.
Reading for pleasure improves student language abilities, reading comprehension, and background information (which is helpful in many subject areas), and has been demonstrated to deepen our understanding of human behaviour and foster empathy (Murphy 2013). When children develop a reading habit while they are young, they become better prepared for their academic years. By the time they start school, their reading comprehension is improved, they have a wider vocabulary than their non-reading peers, and are better focused on their academics.
Moreover, reading for pleasure also positively affects your child’s mental health. In fact, reading for pleasure has been known to give children a “quick escape” from the pressures of life and from school.
In today’s time and age where gadget has become the normal form of entertainment for children instead of physical play and books, building a reading habit while they are young is a crucial parenting role to ensure their solid academic foundation. As they say, success does not happen overnight, and you can’t your child’s future success on chance. These five science-based parenting approaches may draw the line between success and failure. Make a positive difference in your child’s life!
