Helping Your Young Child Overcome Shyness

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

02 Feb 2009 11:06 AM

The world can be a scary place for a toddler or preschooler, especially when it comes to new experiences and new people. While this can be a built in mechanism for children to avoid danger. But if you see that shyness is affecting your young child's positive social interactions, then it may be time to step in a bit. If your young child suffers from too much shyness, you can help her work through it. Here are some effective strategies that you can use to help your young child overcome shyness.

1. Encourage your child whenever you are in new situations or experiences. Never say anything negative about the new experience and praise any progress your child makes, even if it is only letting go of your hand for a few minutes. Talk about how much fun it would be to play in the sand with the other kids, for example.

2. Never chastise or mock your child for being shy. She is not choosing to by shy or afraid, and any negative reinforcement will only make things worse.

3. Use smaller experiences to work her way up to larger ones. For example, if there is a birthday party coming up, don't force her to go. Instead, first invite one child over for a one-on-one playdate. The following week, choose a new playmate. When you child can interact one on one, then you can move up to smaller groups.

4. Can you pinpoint a time when shyness began? If your child has suddenly become shy or is only shy in certain situations, try to figure out the reason why. Being able to address the cause should help your child overcome that shyness.

5. Take a look at your own behavior in social situations. Do you act shy as well? let your child see how you can embrace new situations. Since young children absorb and copy their parents, she may be getting her social cues from you.

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, creating a home in the Home Blog, caring for little ones in the Baby Blog and now relationships in the Marriage Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here or subscribe to the blog using the subscription box on the right.

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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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