Some children often feel shy and embarrassed to speak up in public or in a group. Children with this are often low in confidence. They will be hesitant to mix with other children. They will not communicate with their friends, their teachers, their cousins, relatives etc. Parents usually want their children to develop good social skills. However, it is important that you do not force your child and take him/her out to weddings and other such functions. This is because without tackling his ‘fear’ of people or shyness, forcing your child will be of no help.

Try and not term your child as shy and introvert. Treat him as if he has appropriate social skills. Gradually, your child will open up and interact. All children are not very good social talkers. Some of them are good listeners as well. May be your child is a good observer. Some children take time to enter in a group and start a conversation. Give your child that time if he demands.

Observe your kid at occasions and in situations and try to find out why your kid feels shy. Once you identify the problem, it becomes much easier for you to talk to your child on how should he tackle the situations that make him/her feel uncomfortable.

If you observe your children, your children also observe you. Hence try and be an effective role model. Introduce your kid to your friends and let him see how you make your conversations and how interactive you are with your friends. Try and organize parties so that your child gets a chance to meet people and interact with them. This is a sensitive issue. Do not be impatient and handle it carefully.

Nutrition is crucial for a baby’s health. In infancy, breast milk is the best source of nutrition

Later, after the baby is nine months old, nutrition requirement for the baby will change. Food like vegetables, cereals, and fruits can be consumed by the baby now. Well cooked food is advisable for babies so that they can digest it easily.

It is advisable to give well-cooked and strained food. Small and soft bites should be given. Pastas and crackers can be introduced at this stage now. Remind the child to eat slowly and chew the food properly to avoid choking. Parents should avoid giving foods that have little nutritional value. These foods include chips, candies, chocolates, wafers, dry oily snacks etc. Some of the foods that can choke and should be avoided are chewing gum, hard sweet, peanuts, popcorn, banana and potato chips, carrots etc.

Visit a nutritionist to know what food will best suit your child and help him in his growth. You can also read books in child nutrition so that you make sure you are giving your child adequate nutrition. . Parents can also follow nutrition charts for infants to know what exactly is suitable and best for your child.

And it is not just the responsibility of a mother but a father as well to see to it that the child gets right amount of vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates. This is something which parents should not ignore.

Hobbies are a great way to spend time creatively. What most people do is develop a hobby but after some time due to other work pressure they do not put enough effort to develop it. Cultivating a hobby is important for your kid and not just cultivating but developing and working towards it as well.

Some of the creative hobbies that your kids can develop are stamp collection, coin collection, origami, poetries, sketching, skating, dancing, singing, playing any musical instruments, gardening, cooking, reading, making scrap books, family tree books, embroidery, candle making, painting, bird watching, star gazing, wood carving, sculptures, photography, knitting, soap making, pottery, poetry reading, map collection, puppets, calligraphy, collage making, glass painting, yoga, aromatherapy, computer games, languages etc.   [ list of hobbies  ]

Reading is one of the most common hobby people have. It can take your kid to places which he has never visited, thoughts which have never occurred to him. It allows your kid to enter the world of fascination. It will tell your kid about the importance of good virtues. Creative and experimental cooking can be quite fun for your kids. Cooking can relieves stress. Music is a hobby for many. Vocal or instrumental music can teach a lot to students. Exposing a child to the sound of music is a way of developing their interest in music. It is a hobby that can be turned into a career as well. Gardening is yet another hobby children love to indulge in.

Children, who do not have a hobby, can always cultivate one. Hence parents must encourage their children to develop a hobby which will surely help them in the long run. 

Computers, mobile phones, I-pods, Laptop, Television and so much more! Technology has made life fast and on the move. Everything needs to be quick and sleek! There is no time for anyone…Do you, as parents, have time for your kids?

 Today, it is said that parents are not spending as much time with their kids as they use to spend in early days. Mothers have started working and getting busier. Fathers are tied down with a host of responsibilities. With nuclear families being the "in" thing, the idea of grandparents is also fast vanishing. In such a scenario, how should you devote your time for your kids?

 First a fall, as parents it is an inherent responsibility to spend time with your kids and nit just time but quality time. You may ask what kind of quality time? Quality time essentially means spending time with your kids in such meaningful discussions and talks and games where there is a scope for kids to learn.

 Teaching your kids about not lying, respecting elders, table manners, being polite etc are all extremely important. These things may be taught in schools but the way a mother or a father can teach a child, no one can! Devote your time for your kids by indulging in some games and good discussions. Your kids will also feel happy and they will be able to share their problems with you easily. This will also help them to build good personality and communication skills.  Hence, start a family night meet today itself!  

 As a parent, you may face the situation when your child starts demanding things and until and unless he gets it he throws tantrums. Because parents want to avoid such situations, they give the child what he or she wants. This should absolutely not be encouraged because the kid starts developing a mechanism whereby if he or she wants a particular thing, they will start throwing tantrum until they get it because they know they are going to get it!

Do not fulfill all that your child demands. If he or she cries or throws tantrums, try involving him in some other activity that he likes doing. This will divert his attention and he will forget about his demand atleast for the time being. Then when he demands it again, try to explain him the reasons why you will not buy him what he wants. As a parent, this is the chance to improve on your child’s performance or make him do what he otherwise wouldn’t do! Tell him to complete a particular task only after which you will agree to buy him what he wants.

This will also make your child realize that nothing comes easily. One needs to work for it. Pampering your kid with whatever he wants will not just spoil him but also not lead him to become a responsible individual.

Healthy food that contains all essential nutrients helps your kid to grow up in a healthy manner. At every stage in your child’s life, he or she will need healthy food to be fit and fine and their growth will be perfect. Today kids are eating a lot of junk foods. All kinds of chips and soft drinks lure for kid’s attention!

Kids watch a lot of television and along with that they tend to eat all kinds of junk and packaged food. As a parent you should make sure hat your child minimizes the intake of junk food and increases the intake of healthy nutritious food. It is necessary that parents become a role model to kids. Once you, as parents, start eating healthy food, the kids will start emulating you soon!

One thing that parents do is force the kids to finish food. While this indeed is a good habit that your child should develop, do not make him overeat and feel discomforted. Increase the intake of nuts, fruits and vegetable in your child’s diet. Try and sit together for the meal so that your child learns to sit and eat with other people around. Encourage table manners but do not be very rigid on the same.

Each and every child needs his or her freedom and space. Childhood is one of the most carefree and beautiful phase of human beings. Independence to enjoy this phase is a prerequisite to every child.

Too many ‘do’s’ and ‘dont’s and the ‘should’ and ‘should not’ do not let the child enjoy his or her childhood and they grow up to be matured very soon. Discipline is definitely important for a child to learn many things but too much of boundaries ruin his life.

For example, when the child comes from school, do not tell him to directly sit for his homework or attend some extracurricular activity session. Give some time to himself for himself. Let him sit alone and reflect upon himself. Let him get immersed and absorbed in his thoughts. It is necessary that each child spends some time in solitude. However, excess of this is also not feasible.

You may discuss your kids’ problems with him or her but as part of the growing up let them sort out their own problems at times. This will only make them rise in their own eyes.

This will also inculcate a sense of responsibility and decision making abilities in your children. At times, they may not be right in their decisions, but the ability to make a decision is what should be respected and encouraged.

As kids, it is important that you develop good reading habits in them. Reading not only improves concentration but builds a good foundation for language in your kids. It also helps to widen their knowledge base.

Start with the fairy tale books that have a lot of graphics in them. This will help them to visualize and imagine the story in a better way. Give books to your children that have simple and lucid language in them. Fairy tales and Indian mythological story books are available in the markets that are especially designed for kids.

This also helps the child in optimum utilization of their time. If your child shows keen interest in reading, start subscribing to magazines and newspapers that are especially designed for kids. This will tell them about all the happenings in and around the world. As an active parent, you can also become a member of any library from where you can subscribe books for your children.

Apart from folk tales and story books, you should also encourage books on moral values and ethics that will inculcate good behavior in your kids.

Reading is the favorite pass time for many people around the world. It definitely gives you an edge over others as far as the knowledge base is concerned. In this competitive world, it is necessary that kids read as much as possible.

Your child’s first day at school is something that is memorable to you. However it may pose a lot of nervousness to your children, it is something that you want to tell your child when they grow up. A lot of children cry and whimper because they do not want to go away from their moms and dads. They feel tensed because they are about to enter a territory that is unknown to them. Hence it is better to prepare children many days prior to the D-day called ‘the first day at school’.

Start telling your child a month prior about how he or she should be ready to go to school. Tell them how he or she will be able to play with a lot of toys there and how there will be teachers who will take their special care. If your child is a foodie and if he is served snacks at the school you send him to tell him about all the mouth watering delicacies that he will get there. If possible try to be around the school so that in case your child cries a lot, there is always a second day!

Many parents also enjoy taking photographs and videos to make it more memorable. The first day at school for my daughter was equally memorable for me. However she was nervous and cried for a few minutes, she knew that she was to get a lot of toys there and the moment she saw all the toys, she jumped with joy and got engrossed in playing with them. Tell the teachers about any particular actions or problems that your child faces in advance so that they can take proper care.

Nervousness is quite common in children today. Ask any parent, teacher or a doctor and they will be able to tell you about the seriousness of the problem. A child feels nervous about a variety of things. From peer pressure to coping with the burden of academics, nervousness can occur to anybody. The idea is how one should cope with it!

Typically the signs that your child is facing nervousness are following: irritation, short temperament, anxious, whimsical , lack of sleep, dullness, moodiness, low appetite or capricious appetite, coated tongue, bad breath, underweight, sometimes feverish, bed wetting ( in some cases) etc. The problem is that most of these signs seem trivial and people do not treat them as something serious. However, these are the signs that will truly tell you whether your child feels nervous or not!

Nervous children face a lot physical exertion. They are not usually alert. They lack the enthusiasm and the eagerness that other children of their age group show!

In case your child has protruding abdomen, round shoulders, exaggerated spinal curves, flattened chest, loose knees and dull complexion, then he or she might be facing nervousness. 

As parents it goes without saying that these problems do not get solved immediately. It requires time and patience and emotional support for such problems to heal. Such children require a lot of love, affection and sympathy from people. Involve your kids in some physical activity. Make sure that he or she makes a lot of friends and enjoy their company. Ensure that he eats proper well nourished food. Punishments, scolding and criticisms should be absolutely avoided. Make sure your child has enough sleep and recreation. Maintain a healthy and a happy environment at home.

Sometimes, your child does not feel confident about himself. There is nothing to worry about.  Confidence can be built with some of these effective tools:

The first and the foremost step to increase your child’s confidence levels is to make them feel free while talking to you. Most children do not feel confident about themselves only because they have certain kind of inhibitions. As parents you can teach your child what he can do to cope with moments of distress, and how he can increase his confidence levels.

You can select certain topics and teach your child to speak on them in front of your family members or friends. This will certainly help them build their confidence. You can also gift them or praise them for their act. Initially your child may feel a little difficult to do that, but over a period of time they will surely start feeling a little more confident about themselves.  

Make sure that the physical appearance of your child well maintained. Good physical appearance can work wonders to boost your child’s morale. Shabby dresses and untidy clothes are indeed one of the factors for low confidence levels.

If you can afford, there are also classes that help to build self confidence in your children. However, incase you have budget constraints; you can improve your child’s confidence levels by putting in some voluntary efforts yourself.

You can also teach your child to maintain proper eye contact while they talk to people. Good eye contact and body language will help your child to communicate with confidence. What can also be done is to go a step further and teach your child some general knowledge about the maps of the world or different animals and their species and things like that. This will make him feel confident about himself especially in school when teachers ask such questions.