As their baby grows and develop into toddler some parents many notice that their little one is shy and avoids interaction with others. This can be frustrating for a parent to watch, especially when other little children seem to be having a time of their lives playing and interacting with one another. With some sensible and sensitive parenting and a lot of gentle guidance, a toddler's confidence can be worked on to help overcome extreme shyness. here are the main things to work on:
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DON'T CRITICISE, EVEN IN A TEASING MANNER
Your child needs to know that you can be depended upon for support and understanding when she's feeling insecure, so criticising her will not help at all. Don't label her either, for it will not help if you keep declaring to others that she's shy.
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KNOW WHAT SHE ENJOYS
There must be something that your shy toddler likes to do. Be it a certain kind of game, or a dance you do together at home, or even coloring, scribbling or drawing. Try involving her in an enrichment program that she enjoys. That way, she'll meet other children with similar interests and she may be able to forget or ignore her own shyness and focus on the activity instead.
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STOP APOLOGISING FOR YOUR CHILD'S SHY BEHAVIOUR
There is a big difference between rudeness and shyness and since you already know your kid is shy, you do not need to keep apologising if she does not respond when she is spoken to. Constant apologising and making of excuses for her behavior only serves to degrade her and focus everyone's attention to her shyness, which does little to help her overcome it.
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FIND THE RIGHT TIME TO TALK ABOUT HER SHYNESS
With a little tact, and lots of encouragement from you, your child may be coaxed out of her shell. Try to discover what's making her feel shy and from there, you may, with your innate maternal instinct, help her work it out.
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TELL A TALE
Tell her a story, either a true one or a made-up one, of a time in your life when you too lived with extreme feelings of shyness. Create if you must, examples of situations much like what she's experiencing now. Work your story up to how you overcame your shyness and how everything changed for the better for you. This will reassure her that she's not that abnormal and that this shyness can be overcome.
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LEAD BY EXAMPLE
If you're an exceptionally shy person yourself, you'll have to work on it for you are your child's greatest role model! Try your best to overcome this tendency to be super-shy, if not for yourself, then for your kid who's watching and learning from you. As much as you can, do model confident, outgoing behaviour for your child to follow.
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HELP HER BLEND IN-IT HELPS!
The last thing a shy kid needs is a whole lot of attention on her. So, start by dressing her in a way that she will blend right in instead of standing out among a group of friends. This way, she will feel more at ease to participate in play and other activities.