Healthy Competition
Competition helps kids learn that it is not always the best or the brightest who are successful, but rather those who work hard and stick with it. Children who engage in competitive activities learn critical social skills by interacting with other children, while also developing positive self-esteem and learning the value of hard work.
In planning competitive activities, define "accomplishment" not as winning the activity, but as setting a goal for something young people can put their minds to and achieve. Be there to support kids through their challenges and regularly reinforce the message that it's okay to lose as long as they are putting forth an effort and learning from the experience. Modeling good behavior is also a powerful tool!
It's important to promote healthy competition. For example:
If a young person is involved in healthy competition, he/she may:
- ask to participate in the activity again
- be able to win and lose gracefully
- learn new skills and want to better themselves
- enjoy improved self esteem
If a young person is involved in unhealthy competition, he/she may:
- resist participation in the activity
- fake an illness to avoid the activity
- say outright that they don't want to participate
- show signs of depression, anxiety, difficulty sleeping, or loss of appetite--all that warrant further discussion.
Click here to read more about teaching healthy competition.