Step two in developing grit: Teach self- control!

 

The ability to stay resilient is very much dependant on managing the negative emotions that will spring up for your children as they attempt to reach their goal. So, how do we help them, as teachers/ coaches? 

There are many different ways but here are a few examples for teachers/ coaches:

1) build a trust walk- have a child blindfolded and pair him/her up with another child who they have to trust to overcome the obstacles from the start to the finish line of the walk); 

That way they learn to lean on others, they realize they have friends who they can turn to, they realize they are worthy of the team and also that they can always ask and find help if they need it! 

After the task let the children talk about how they felt while doing it!

2) form a compliment circle- practicing kindness is an important part of building resilience in children. Have children sit in a circle with their legs stretched out in front of them. Pick one child to go first. He or she will pick someone else in the circle to give a compliment to. Once you’ve received a compliment, you pull your legs in so everyone knows you’ve received one already. Keep going around the circle until everyone has received praise.

The real trick to the game is getting children to give compliments on something other than visual traits. Try to have them avoid things that have to do with looks so the compliments are more meaningful. This is harder for younger children and takes some practice.

3) do a hula- hoop challenge- another step towards building resiliency in children is by learning to face conflict and develop problem-solving skills. Everything from picture puzzles to video games can teach problem-solving and reasoning, but it’s also important to learn how to work with others to solve these problems as a team. This game gives children a chance to work together as a group towards a common goal.

Have the children form a circle while holding hands, but before the last pair connect, place a hula-hoop over one arm. Without letting each others hands go, the challenge is to get the hula-hoop to move across the circle. Children will have to work together to move the hoop and support each other so they don’t fall over. At the end, talk about what made it difficult and the ideas they came up with to solve problems.

4) coloring for emotional clarity- ask children to recall a recent emotional experience. This could be positive, such as an exciting birthday party, or negative – like an argument with a friend.

The instructions are simple: have the children close their eyes and try to reconnect with their feelings during that situation, color in the Mandala in a way that represents how they feel.

They can use a variety of colors or just one color, as well as their own choice of materials – however it should best represent their feelings.

After they have colored each section in, discuss the color(s) with them. Ask them to reflect on why they chose the color or colors they used, and use questions and active listening to open up more dialogue if you feel it will help.

These are just a few ideas. There are many more to explore so I will write about them in coming articles.