Getting your kids to practice healthy habits is easy so long as you take the time necessary while they are young. Healthy habits extend far beyond eating their fruits and veggies – there is a whole emotional aspect as well. In fact, fruits and veggies can pale in comparison with a child’s emotional IQ (not to mention, it can make mommy and daddy’s life easier when their kiddo is conscious of their emotional health).
Let’s be honest, it can be way scarier when our child gets angry and holds their breath until they pass out, over not eating their carrots. Or if they purposefully pee their pants when they are upset… be it over a caretaker or babysitter. The good news is oftentimes this is a phase they go through that they eventually outgrow. Remember to try not to panick. Often panicking exasperates the problem. Below is a list of bad habits your child may or may not exhibit and what you can do to stop them!
Bad Habits
Thumb Sucking
Head Banging
Body Rocking
Teeth Grinding
Nail Biting or Picking
Nose Picking
Hair Twirling or Pulling
Tics
Self-Touching
Breath Holding
Remedies of Bad Habits
Bad habits could be caused by a number of different reasons and can start as early as nine months old. Sometimes children form these habits as a way of soothing themselves. Other times, it could be because they were exposed to a stressful situation or trauma of some kind. Many of the above-mentioned habits go away on their own or could be part of a phase for a child. The important thing to remember is to not panick.
In fact, there are several things you can do to redirect your child’s bad habits. For one, you could praise them more for good behaviour. You can also try to figure out what is making your child stressed and see how you can aptly respond to the situation, or help your child respond to the situation in a healthy manner. Some parents have noted that ignoring the behaviour (especially those done in an attempt to get attention) ends up stopping the habit altogether.
In summary, try not to worry too much if your child is exhibiting a bad habit. If it scares you enough, go to your doctor or paediatrician for an intervention! Praise, positivity and patience are key to getting through this time with your child!
Who would’ve thought that happiness would make a child more successful later on in life? As it turns out, being smart isn’t the only thing that gives kiddos a headstart in their careers – being happy young is paramount to a child’s success. So, what makes happy children and how does this impact their lives later on?
In 2018, a group of researchers from MIT, Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania found that frequent back-and-forth communication will help them not only develop and foster their communication skills but help them become happier later on in life.
Further research in 2013 found in a Unicef report rated Dutch children the happiest in the world. According to researchers, Dutch kids are ahead of their peers in childhood wellbeing when compared with 29 of the world’s richest industrialised countries.
In essence, Dutch children enjoy freedoms otherwise denied to many other children. In a typical Dutch household, children are the focal point of a family unit. Everything is centered around them! And what is really unique is how most moms and dads don’t do for children what they can do for themselves. They encourage independence at a young age!
When it comes to school, Dutch children are more likely to be excited to go than even those children based in the UK or USA. In fact, the Dutch seem to place less importance on schooling and grades, and more importance on the happiness of their children. Another important note is that happy parents raise happy kids.
As it turns out, happy children become successful later on in life. Most parents want to raise happy kids, but they don’t really know where to start. So, in an effort to take a cue from the Netherlands, here’s what they do differently and what inevitably leads to the world’s happiest children!
Tips to Remedy Your Child’s Bad Habits
There are many things you can do to keep your child happy and healthy without necessarily spoiling them. Here are a few tips we found:
- Get happy yourself! It’s hard to keep your kiddos happy if you yourself are stressed out!
- Praise your child on effort, NOT perfection.
- Teach your child optimism. The power of positive thinking can go a long way in life and helps spark a healthy attitude and outlook on life.
- Teach emotional intelligence. Learn to listen to your child when they are experiencing an emotional reaction and talk to them about it without making them wrong for having feelings (we all have feelings, after all).
- Get your kiddos on a schedule! From young, children like to know what to expect. It helps give them a sense of security and helps them handle change better later on in life according to an article byAHA! Parenting.
- Spend quality time with your children. Take some one-on-one time with them to focus on them and their needs every day!
In summary, happy children are more likely to be successful later on in life.
About Little Human Scholars Full & Half Day Daycare in PJ
Little Human Scholars is an all-in-one childcare solution. It is a preschool, playschool, kindergarten, nursery and full day daycare centre (with extended hours) located in the heart of PJ.
In fact, the location is one of the things which makes Little Human Scholars so sought after – it is conveniently nestled near Jalan Gasing, University hospital, PJ Old town, PJ New town, Jaya One, Jaya33, and the PJ IT Mall.
The best part is LHS has premiere services many other schools in PJ don’t offer such as full day daycare with extended hours, CCTV access for parents, and a nifty little phone app called Toddlytic which provides parents with automatic updates on their child’s development, behaviour and health checks.
With full-time guards always present at each of their locations, access to CCTV (which is in every room except the office, bathroom and kitchen areas), and very strict pick-up and drop-off rules, Little Human Scholars treats every child who walks into its hallways as one of their own children!
This place has it all: location, safety, health, IGSCE curriculum and play-based learning. What more could you ask for? Did I mention they also have transportation services and offer meal plans for students? It doesn’t get any better than that.
If you are interested in a tour of one of our centres (that’s right, there’s more than one), all you need to do is fill out the form here or call +6017-7303-025 and an LHS administrative staff will get back with you shortly!
Cheers,
Jana Moreno