West Ridge Academy's Advice On How You Can Reinforce The Confidence In Your Children

West Ridge Academy says that there is no need to push the panic button if your kid is shy if he is still at a very young age. Although after passing through a certain age, it may already be considered unhealthy for your child to still be overly shy or withdrawn as this can become a hurdle to his social development.

Two or three-year old kids are normally shy when placed in a social environment. Most of them overcome this initial shyness rather easily though, once they get the hang of things and they find other kids to play with. Kids who remain overly shy after reaching the age of three or four however may have to be closely monitored.
Even though some people are inherently shy, most of them actually conquer their shyness if they are asked to articulate their opinions on certain matters. Shyness can become a burden however once a person allows it to win and he retreats in fear when faced with a social situation, thus effectively stifling your creativity or your chance at making acquaintances.

As per West Ridge Academy, so that your child can fully enjoy his life and not become an unwilling victim of this incapacitating social obstacle, you must observe the following: Accept him as he is: Focus on his positive traits so he will gain confidence instead of pinning him down for being shy in which case he might sulk even further. As we have already discussed, the inherent shyness of a person must not be taken negatively as long as he is aware of this and is able to control it if necessary when called for in certain situations. Do not directly attack his shyness as a sort of a defect as he may be demoralized which will cause him to withdraw even further. It is better to just concentrate on his good characteristics and encourage him to articulate his opinions in certain situations.

Avoid labels: As much as possible, stay away from labels. If you use labels frequently enough, kids will buy into the idea and will eventually accept that it's really who they are even though they could have been able to overcome it initially. What's worse is that he may even learn to use this label as a crutch and opt out from awkward situations that he doesn't feel like taking on.
Encouragement: Do not push him into social situations. Rather, be creative in trying to come up with ways to cajole him into joining the group with his own intention. You can help him conquer his shyness by holding his hand while you try and approach a group of children. It is not good to compare him with the other children because he might feel inferior and he will lose his self-esteem even more.

Practice: West Ridge Academy shares that you can actually shore up his confidence by resorting to role-play games, especially if you use his favorite characters in it. It will allow him to explore different ideas on how to join a play group for example,thereby essentially giving himself the encouragement that he needs once he would be faced with the actual situation. For example, you may ask your child how his favorite superhero would approach a group of kids in order to make friends with them. Unbeknownst to him, even though it may seem like child's play, he is actually learning the skills necessary to approach certain social situations.