Nursery World - I believe in you

Children's sense of self-esteem relies on the right messages from nannies and other adults. Jenny Lindon explains why The term 'self-esteem' is now used a great deal. But what does it actually mean and what are the practical implications for caring adults like yourself, who spend their days with children?

The term 'self-esteem' is now used a great deal. But what does it actually mean and what are the practical implications for caring adults like yourself, who spend their days with children?

In the psychological literature, 'self-esteem' is mainly used to mean an individual's overall evaluation of their own self-worth. Your level of self-esteem is created by the gap you see between what you want to be and what you believe you are. So a person's self-esteem could be anywhere between extremely high and extremely low.

Self-esteem gets related to self- confidence because people, whether adults or children, who have very low self-esteem feel uneasy about trying something challenging.

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