Raising a child's self esteem?

Question

My 7 year old niece broke my heart today when she tearfully told me how other kids tease her, they tell her she's not very smart (although according to her teacher her math and reading skills are well above average). There was recently a contest in her school and she lost to the most 'popular girl' in her class. I have a feeling that there's more that she's not sharing. She's a sweet kid but an extremely sensitive one too. I know kids can be cruel and I worry about how this will effect her. Any advice?

Answer 1

i have always had the same problem with my little sister. she is now 10 and has gotten better at sticking up for herself. first tell your niece to think of all the talents she has and all the great things about her. and tell her to not let the other kids push her buttons. if they start making fun of her she should compliment thier shirt or somthing, the other kids will wonder why thier teasing isnt working and evntually give up. as long as she doesnt get up set in front of them. save the tears for home and kill em' with kindness. ;)

Answer 2

Find ways to make her feel special.  Take her places like Build-A-Bear or to the movies.  GIve her a lot of attention.  If she has a friend take both of them out to do some things.

Answer 3

You need to find a way to tuffen her up or the real world will eat her up as she get older.

Answer 4

aww the poor girl.

Maybe she would like to join an organisation or club outside school, where she meets other children and will get appreciation for something she really likes doing and therefore is really good at, e.g. some kind of sport. Many 7 year old girls love dancing... or amateur dramatics or girls scouts. She might even go on a trip with girls in her age or have a sleepover. This could increase her self esteem.

But I think it's very important to praise her a lot too and if she did a chore or helped you or her parents, give her a hug and tell her how well she did and what a good girl she is. And "I'm so proud of you, honey" can work wonders.

Good luck! :-)

Answer 5

It is hard to teach them that every kid gets teased that is just the meanness of kids.  My son is 5 years old and gets picked on because of different reasons and I have to calm him down and tell him again that some kids are just mean and don't know any better.  Get her involved in stuff she is good at and let her see that she is smart and she is good at something and that she doesn't have to be like the other kids.  The "popular girl" usually has a bad life because she is never who she really is just to pretect popularity, I know I never wanted to be the popular one, just to much pressure to be perfect

Answer 6

just talk to her, i know raising kids in school can be difficult because as u said kids can be cruel and when kids get cruel, you have to be there as a parent to watch over her and help her when she's hurt, so i know how it is.Just talk to her and let her know that you're there for her, encourage her that even though kids are cruel to her, that she do not have to take them on,she'll be better off just ignoring them or if it gets tough to deal with to talk to her teacher about it.