Make success specific.
Choose a task that offers a realistic challenge. Completing a small step can give a young person something concrete to remember when a bigger task feels daunting.
Reflect on what helped.
Ask how they approached the task and which support or strategy made a difference. This makes progress easier to understand and repeat.
Keep encouragement grounded.
Describe what you have noticed: preparation, persistence or asking a useful question. Avoid expecting confidence to look the same in every child or every setting.
From the ECNM journal
This reading edition adapts our published work. Explore the original article below.