6 tips for raising confident girls
We all know the sparkly sheen of a self-confident gal- sparks fly as her feet hit the ground, she trusts her abilities and backs her own judgements. Not to be trivialised, self-confidence is the greatest predictor of school achievement, above that of gender, age and intelligence. If you got it, you got it, and if you don’t- then what?
Recent studies have found that girls as young as six associate brilliance with males, and are less likely than boys to believe that members of their gender are ‘really really smart’. Girls tend to associate these abilities in maths and physical science as being related to boys EVEN THOUGH girls achieve higher average grades. Something here just doesn’t add up.
So how can we create the right situations for girls to realise their fullest potential, feel empowered and see their true abilities?
Celebrate Role Models
If she can see it. She can be it. Our pick is Sabre Norris who was one of the first girls to throw a 540 in the halfpipe on her skateboard. And she was only nine. When she’s not skateboarding and surfing, she also loves dressing up in sparkly dresses. Extreme sports and princess dresses- girls need to know they can choose both.
Create safe spaces for failure
Dr. Haimovitz suggests creating challenges for kids and encouraging them to make mistakes. Perhaps you’ll pick a challenging puzzle, or a difficult lego set. Even better if it’s a task you’ll likely fail at too! It’s great for children to see that their parents also fail sometimes, and to see that there’s life after failure. For some epic fails from inspiring role models, check out this book.
Explore your biases
No-one is telling girls that they’re ‘no good at maths’, or ‘more fragile than boys’- instead, these messages are implicitly communicated through our behaviour and words. Research shows that parents are more likely to encourage their sons to take risks and attempt tasks without assistance. In similar studies, parents were more likely to explain science to their sons than daughters (even when the children were 1 years old), and three times more likely to mention numbers in everyday conversations (“there are five raisins!” or “Look at those two best!”). Words matter.
Dress the Part
Boys’ clothes are largely designed to be practical, while girls’ are designed to be pretty. Sometimes gender-neutral branding means sucking the colour out and sitting in a literal grey middle zone. But in 2020 there are more brands than ever that blend cute colourful designs with functionality- our fave is Bobo Chooses. Give your daughter the kind of clothing she can leap, run, crawl and somersault in
Change the Narrative
Less than one fifth of best selling childrens books feature female leads. When girls are invisible, they learn that boys are more important than them...when girls only see boys as scientists, engineers, mathematicists and leaders- they learn that these jobs are for boys only. Pick books that celebrate strong, independent and intelligent women (like our upcoming book Diary of an Astronaut- a story that will empower her to reach for the stars!).
Cheer her on
Parents unofficial job title is ‘cheer leader’. Life is infinitely tricky and difficult- and the supportive nudge from a parent goes a long way. Research has shown that girls who are encouraged by their parents are twice as likely to stick with science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
So dust off the pom-poms and give it a high-kick!
