Children are born with a drive to explore and learn, but kids need to develop motivation within themselves in order to accomplish their goals.
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How to Nurture Your Child’s Determination

Help your child try to solve problems on his or her own: use questions to inspire them to work through problems (“what do you think you need to balance these two blocks?”). Questions help your child use their own thinking skills and encourage them to challenge themselves.

Point out how your child’s actions help to achieve a goal. Avoid only praising your child’s success. Instead, notice the steps involved in achieving a goal. For example, say “I noticed how carefully you tried to put the puzzle piece in its spot. It doesn’t seem to fit that way, but I bet you can make it work!”

Support your child as they try to use new skills. By doing something for your child that they want to do by themselves, you take away some of their self-confidence. Whenever possible, let your child do things like pick out their own clothes, wash their face, and put on their socks. Praise the effort. If your child begins to get frustrated, you can offer suggestions or some assistance, but remember not to take over the work!

Encourage your child to try new things. Help your child succeed by giving them many opportunities to feel successful. By giving your child challenges that you know they can complete with little or no help from you, you are helping to build their self-confidence!

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