How to Help Children Become More Resilient

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little boy on a zipline

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“The original definition of the word resilience had to do with a material’s ability to resume its shape or position after being bent, stretched, or compressed. Today we commonly use the word to describe our ability to bounce back from adversity. …

“As children develop resilience, they believe they can influence and even control outcomes in their lives through effort, imagination, knowledge, and skill. … They focus on what they can do rather than on what is outside their control” (Lyle J. Burrup, “Raising Resilient Children,” Liahona, Mar. 2013, 11).

Consistently offer desirable rewards for the actions and behaviors you would like to reinforce.
Praise the child’s effort.
Tell children they have inherent worth because they are sons or daughters of God.
Define failure as temporary and as an opportunity to learn.
Define success as a product of hard work and sacrifice.
Discuss rules and set logical consequences that are reasonable, related to the behavior, and respectful of both parent and child.