Children are born with special talents that make them capable of doing great things in life. Those special talents, if discovered and nurtured in the early childhood, can help them in finding the path to success...
To utilise the inherent talents children have – in the most productive way – all they need is a mentor who can show them how to enhance their natural abilities to achieve success. Parents, certainly, act as the guiding source of light, who can show the right path to their children and motivate them to bring out the best of their abilities. However, many of us, instead of identifying and nurturing our child’s passion, natural aptitude and inclinations, try to channelise the child’s mind to choose only those hobbies and activities, which we think are more popular, practical, productive and useful for them.
In fact, many of the parents often do not realise that narrowing down their children’s minds towards only those specific activities may not necessarily bring out the best of their inherent talents. Your child may have deep interest in certain activities that may attract his attention. Such activities may be the signs of your child’s inner or hidden talents, which may be an inherent part of his personality. As a parent, you need to identify those inherent talents in your child and then provide him with the required recognition, guidance, encouragement and moral support to nurture them.
We bring to you some interesting tips which will help you identify and enhance your child’s inherent talent…Read on
Develop a positive approach – It’s time to put aside all your prejudices and perceptions about the ideal activities that your child should do because what you like may not be necessarily your child’s choice too. With this positive outlook, you will be able to show your genuine appreciation for your child’s choices.
Review your child’s activities during her leisure time – Play close attention to what your child likes to do during free time, as the roots of his hidden talents may lie in his favourite pastime. For this, you need to expose your child to a variety of healthy and productive activities and see where his inclination lies in. For example, check whether he choses to draw and colour or likes to reading story books, play brain-teasing board games or playing outdoors with friends etc. Your observation will give you a good idea of your child’s talents.
Nurture and Identify special skills – Encourage your child to utilise his special talents in the activities that you feel can bring out his best. For example, if your child likes sorting his toys as per shapes and sizes, may be he is good at organising things and objects. To nurture this, buy him some building blocks, shape sorter toys etc. And, if your child is keen at narrating stories using his imaginations, ask him to create a story on his own and then narrate it to you. If your child often gets immersed in his own thoughts, enroll into art classes wherein he can nurture his creative skills and also raise his imagination level. This way, providing your child with the right exposure will enhance his special talents.
Track his interests at school – It is essential to meet your child’s teacher on a regular basis and have a one-on-one discussion with her, to find out if your child does exceptionally well in a particular subject or an activity. Do check with the teacher about how you can help your child at home to support his academic interests and co-curricular interests.
The right environment at home – After you find out your child’s interests at school, set the environment at home wherein he can get engrossed in the activities of his choice. For this, schedule his study and play time in such a way that he will be able to give enough time to pursue those activities and study the particular subject which he likes the most.
Make him join hobby classes – To further help your child to enhance his skills and fulfill her interests, provide your child with opportunity to explore new activities by enrolling her in arts/dance/music/self-defense hobby classes. After your child spends a couple of months in the classes, look whether she shows progress in learning the new activity. Also, ask her whether she wants to continue in the hobby classes or not.
Be the source of inspiration – Always be there to support and motivate your child to chase her dreams. Praise your child for not only success but also her efforts to succeed in what she does. Also, tell her that there is always, a scope for improvement, as she has the capability to learn more. This way, your child will stay self-motivated to accomplish her goals.
To conclude :
- Please do not force your child to achieve perfection in whatever he does. Let your child take risks and learn from his mistakes.
- Also, remember that you need to foster your child’s passion and give the right direction as well as take care of her overall development.
- Ensure that your child stays committed to his passion, at the same time, does not deviate from her academic career and social life.
- So, help your child to maintain the right balance between his special interests and his physical, mental, social and intellectual growth and development.
- A balanced approach will not only boost your child’s confidence and capability to chase his dreams to fulfill his potential, but will also complete your role as a loving, caring, supporting and an inspiring parent.
Photo credits: Helena Lopes, Gustavo Fring, CottonBro, Fisherprice, Jonathan Borba
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