How Quality Time Affects Your Children?
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Life is busy, we get it. With work, bills to pay, household chores, and other tasks, it is easy to get overwhelmed. Life can get the best of you and you end up feeling exhausted at the end of the day. You have no more time and energy left for playtime when you get home and for bedtime stories.
However, your children need you. From the moment that they are born to their teenage years towards adulthood, they need your time, presence, and attention. The time that you set aside to spend with your children has significant effects on their development. Your role in their emotional and behavioral development cannot be stressed enough.
Children grow relatively fast. One day they are gurgling infants, and the next thing you know, they are off to college. You wouldn’t want to miss their childhood just because you were busy. So while you’re at it, create wonderful experiences and memories with your children. Take loads of photographs and invest in the best photo storage to keep your memoirs safe and intact.
Table of Contents
Quality Time Helps Build your Child’s Self-Esteem.
Self-esteem is liking yourself and having confidence in what you can do. It means believing in yourself, which is important for children who are just starting their journey in this world.
Letting your child know that you love him helps fosters his self-esteem. It lets your child know that you appreciate him. Studies show that parental love, along with support, involvement, acceptance, and responsiveness, has a positive effect on a child’s self-esteem. However, when a child experiences rejection, neglect, and hostile behaviors from their parents, he will assume that he is incompetent and unworthy.
Happy and nurturing relationships also have a positive effect on your child’s self-esteem. His sense of family will help develop his sense of identity. He knows that he belongs in a group of people where he is loved and accepted.
Create family rituals that your child can look forward to. This can include bedtime stories, backyard camping and barbecues on weekends, and doing chores together. Letting your child help will make him feel important and needed. Set aside time to do activities that your child loves to do, such as setting up his favorite Lego figure or doing jigsaw puzzles. Those thirty minutes or one hour that you spend daily focused solely on your child can have lasting effects on him.
Quality Time Facilitates Communication.
When you spend time together as a family, you open opportunities for parent-child communication. Once the lines of communication are established, your child will feel more confident to open up about his feelings and fears.
Spending time with your children will encourage them to talk to you and ask questions. If you are absent, how can they even initiate a conversation with you? Make yourself available to your child and make sure to listen sincerely to his concerns. Do not just nod absentmindedly. Your child will be able to know if you are simply patronizing him.
Quality Time Teaches your Children Essential Social Skills.
No man is an island, and your child will certainly need to know how to relate with other people as he grows. Spending time with your child gives him opportunities to develop the social skills that he will need later on in life. For example, your child will learn how to face and react to conflicts, accept compliments graciously, and respect others.
A simple board game with your child will teach him many things. It will help him learn the process of taking turns and accepting defeat.
Quality Time Provides Opportunities for Parents to Role Model.
You hold the greatest influence over your child. When you spend time with him, you have the chance to show him the proper behavior that you want them to emulate. For instance, the easiest way to teach a child to say “thank you” is by saying “thank you” yourself when the situation requires it. You can teach your child how they should act in different situations by showing them through your example.
Quality Time is Good for your Child’s Mental Health.
Happy memories and experiences build the foundation for your child’s mental health and well-being. Children who receive inadequate attention and care from their parents are more likely to develop emotional issues when they grow up.
Mentally healthy children are happier, more confident, learn quickly, have healthy relationships, and can manage their emotions better. Good mental health is necessary for your child’s social, emotional, and physical health as well.
Spending time with your children is not just for fun, but is also essential to your child’s overall health and development. Simple daily activities, such as sharing meals, can mean a whole lot of difference for your child’s well-being.
