Share your tips for boosting confidence in small children for a chance to win a SIGNED copy of THE LION INSIDE plus a £100 JOHN LEWIS VOUCHER!

[SorchaMumsnet]

From the creator of the known and loved Bright Side lifestyle brand, Rachel Bright, and illustrator of Oi Frog!, Jim Field, comes a feel good rhyming story about one little mouse trying to make himself heard and discovering along the way that even the smallest of us can have the heart of a lion.

Perfect for fans of Giraffes Can't Dance, this stylish book from two contemporary stars really is something to shout about - it will make you laugh, cry and want to read it every bedtime.

Share your tips for boosting confidence in small children for a chance to win a signed copy of The Lion Inside plus a £100 John Lewis voucher!

This discussion is sponsored by Hachette and will close on 4 April when the winner will be posted on the thread.

Showing patience, love and understanding to your child is so important. Tell them you love them and carry out tasks together so they feel supported. Encourage social outings and friends. Encourage communication of all kinds with all ages of people but with you by their side. Be happy, have fun together and laugh.

Positive reinforcement all the way.

Praise, and lots of smiles of encouragement.

Always encourage them to do the best they can and not to worry to much.

Lots of praise and let them know how hard you remember things as a child and that they are doing well if they are doing their best

always be positive around them, give them lots of hugs and tell them something you love about them everyday.

Encouragement from Grandma seems to be very effective at the moment

Praising them when they try things and also making sure they absolutely know they are loved

Always a loving comment on all they try,do and complete. Mums praise is by far the best .

Model confident behaviour. My parents showered me with praise and love but they were both crippled by lack of self confidence and I think my low self confidence was learned from them.
Also, let dc climb high climbing frames and run off and play without you (within reason obviously). I try not to say 'be careful' unless strictly necessary. Show them you trust in their abilities.

I make sure I praise them a lot. If they do well at school or do something independent i make sure i acknowledge it and tell them how well they've done! I also get them to do tasks independently such as picking their own breakfast or dinner, then we make it together and they feel like they've done something well which is a confidence booster

Encourage small children by letting them do small tasks themselves such as helping to tidy up or put their own clothes on. This will give them such a sence of achievement and a need for there growing independence.

Praise them, catch them being good, believe in them...ignore behaviours you don't want to see (where possible ;))

Encourage them to overcome their fears. So if it has an irrational fear of custard, make a custard-based dessert etc. Works wonders.

I had this problem when I was younger and my mum encouraged me to join a club at night away from school and this really helped me. I took up karate.

Lots of praise, stickers and rewards. Ignore the niggles, don't pay too much attention to the bad behaviours - still ensure they are disciplined but get it over and done with and don't dwell on it

praise and reward good behaviour and dont focus on the bad behaviour. Spending one on one time with child and focus on trying to boost confidence i.e everyone is different, we all have special talents

Letting them know what to expect whenever something new is planned can help. Being positive yourself and praising all helps.

From very young age do not hel them (THE BEST OF YOUR OWN ABILITIES) to do anything: if they fall let them pick themselves up, when they eat let them get dirty, acknowledge their efforts and welcome their intentions. Cheer them, always!

Encouragement, Praise and always listen to your child, sometimes that " I can't do it" is I don't want to do it.Don't push your child into something because its something you enjoyed as a child keep things fun and enjoyable

I give my boys plenty of encouragement and praise.

Lead by example, if children think that you are unsure about a situation they will feel anxious themselves

I think lots of praise and excitement for successes and trying but also to let them fail and try again and help them to work out how to progress for themselves.

Make sure you take special time maybe an hour or two and take them out for an icecream and say nothing negative in that time so even if they say a brick is green your response might be that's a nice colour. It should help build their self esteem

One thing so many people forget is to ask your child what they think and how they feel. What do they think other children or adults are feeling? Or even what does the household pet feel! Having them explore their feelings and communicate builds their confidence in asking questions to others and become empathetic at the same time.