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If your child is struggling with academic success, their overall happiness might have something to do with it.
Teaching your child the art of happiness can boost their classroom performance. So here are three simple scientific techniques that parents can use to give children lessons in lasting happiness.
Every parent wants their child to be happy – for many it's the hallmark of successful parenting. 🙂
Yet when students are struggling in the classroom, parents and teachers forget that before asking them to work harder or revise their lessons, they should check in on their happiness levels.
In fact, several studies suggest that happiness can greatly influence academic success.
How does happiness affect learning?
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Facilitates cognition
According to experts, emotion precedes cognition.
Which means that before students can learn, their emotions will decide how they learn.
Positive emotions produce hormones like dopamine and serotonin. When these chemicals enter the brain they increase the brain’s capacity to make connections. This induces creativity and improves problem solving skills.
Furthermore, this chemical reaction also helps students retain new information, better and access it faster in the future. ✊
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Creates a safe learning environment
When kids are happy they will feel secure and grounded in the present moment. This allows them to be vulnerable and trust the guidance they’re receiving to learn.
When children feel safe and free from threat, they’re more able to bond with their peers and embrace a collaborative nature. Which will support their overall academic performance. 💪
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Allows enjoyment and fun
Studies have reported that “happiness, or positive feelings like enjoyment or fun, support student schoolwork”.
When students enjoy their work or find pleasure in it they are bound to put their best foot forward.They gain the motivation to overcome setbacks and try their best to excel.
If kids are having fun while learning they're less bothered about competition and aren't as conscious about their own performance which lets them learn with enthusiasm.
How to teach happiness to children
Happiness is some part genetic, some part circumstantial but also largely learnt.
If you’re confused about what happiness learning is, here are three habits that parents can teach their children, which will help them become happier individuals. 🙂
1. Practice mindful habits
Many daily routines, if practiced consistently, can make us feel happy. Some of these include meditating, exercising, having rituals, cultivating optimism, practicing gratitude and performing acts of kindness.
These habits can also help kids cope with any difficult emotions they might be experiencing. They might even be able to find moments of calm through their overwhelm. 😌
2. Surround kids with good relationships
Good relationships are at the heart of finding and maintaining happiness for everyone. ❤️
Supportive and loving relationships with friends and family, peers and teachers make kids feel that their life is valued and worthy. This helps them build self-confidence too. All these positive emotions make children extremely happy.
So parents must strengthen their relationships with their children and teach them how to cultivate strong ones with others too.
3. Teach acceptance of all emotions
Life isn’t always about experiencing happiness and joy.
There are a range of other not-so-nice emotions like anger, disappointment, jealousy, sadness and loss that are also part of the human experience.
Being happy doesn’t mean suppressing emotions or demeaning them as negative. Our mental wellbeing depends on accepting all the emotions we feel. 🤝
Not being able to accept the reality of our feelings often gives rise to anxiety, stress and deep unhappiness.
So the next time you find your child upset, let them express their emotions without rushing them to ‘feel’ happy or find solutions. Empathising with them is the best way you can support their healing process. Which is sure to lead them to future happiness. 😃
At GoStudent, we understand the important role happiness plays in classroom performance. We provide our students with complete academic support, so parents can be stress-free and encourage happiness habits in students. Book a trial session with one of our tutors here! 🚀
