New Year’s Resolutions for Kids
The new year is here, a great time for making some positive changes in your life. And kids can make New Year’s resolutions, too! Now’s a perfect time for parents to start helping their kids build some good habits that are also healthy and fun. Whether your kiddos strive to study more, help out around the house or learn a new musical instrument, there are ways you can help them create and stick with their goals.
New Year’s Resolutions for Kids: Why is it Important?
Helping your children set and accomplish their goals can increase their self-esteem, confidence and self-reliance. Setting goals can also help foster a growth mindset in a child, get them excited about new opportunities, introduce them to new ideas, and broaden their creativity, explains Tasha M. Brown, a child psychologist at TMB Psychological Services.
“The new year is a great opportunity to introduce the idea of resolution and goal setting to children because there is a natural opportunity for parents, caregivers, and educators to have conversations with children about the importance of goals,” Brown said. “By encouraging children to set New Year’s resolutions and goals and by assisting them in the process, parents and caregivers can instill in their children the skills that they will need to continue to be successful well into adulthood.”
Helping Kids Pick Out New Year’s Resolutions
Brown recommends encouraging kids come up with a list of ideas in each of the following categories:
- Areas the child believes they are already successful
- Areas the child wants to improve in
- New things that the child wants to learn and explore
“I then encourage parents and caregivers to have their child set a specific goal in each of the categories,” Brown said. “For example, if the category the child chooses is ‘areas they believe they are already successful,’ they may write ‘I am successful at reading.’ They may then set a goal of reading five books each month. Parents and caregivers must be active participants in their child’s goal and resolution setting.”
In addition to encouraging your children to create a list of resolution ideas, it’s important to brainstorm and collaborate together during the process, says Nicholette Leanza, LPCC-S, a clinical counselor at LifeStance Health.
“This will allow them to take ownership over the chosen goal and will also make them feel more empowered and excited about it,” Leanza said. “It’s also important that the resolutions are age-appropriate for each child as well.”
And of course, it’s always easier for anyone to stick with their goals if they line up with their interests.
“If kids are having a tough time deciding which resolutions to pick, parents can provide a few options based on their child’s interests to help them with their decision,” Leanza said.
New Year’s Resolution Ideas for Kids
Every child is different, but here are some ideas for New Year’s resolutions that parents might consider suggesting to their kids:
Volunteering. Parents might want to consider suggesting that their kids volunteer in the community once a month.
“Volunteering allows kids to see life from other people’s perspectives and helps build empathy, responsibility and leadership skills,” Leanza said. “Once again, it’s important to align the resolution to your child’s interest so if your child loves animals, suggesting they volunteer for a local animal shelter may be a great match for them.”
Learn something new. Another great resolution suggestion is for kids to learn a new skill like cooking, coding, playing an instrument, a new language or photography.
“This helps them expand their interests and capacity to try new things and also nurtures a love of life-long learning,” Leanza said.
Consider a family resolution. This could be having regular technology-free family time, Leanza said.
“Setting aside phones and devices to connect with family teaches the importance of meaningful face-to face connections with others,” she said.
Tips for Sticking with New Year’s Resolutions
Picking a resolution is easy. Sticking with it is the hard part. That’s why it’s important that parents encourage their children to stick to their goals throughout the year.
Have frequent conversations about the resolution and goals. This will increase the likelihood that the child will be successful at achieving their goals, Brown said, adding that it’s important for parents to praise their children for their efforts in reaching their goals.
Parents can also teach their children to celebrate their wins. In this case, that means success in reaching their goals and New Year’s resolutions.
“Teaching your child to celebrate their wins is an important part of the goal-setting process. There are several fun things that parents can do to help their children set and celebrate their wins such as movie nights, a favorite dessert or a fun outing,” Brown said.
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