It's that time of the year when we all have a chance to reflect on the things we would like to improve and goals we’d like to set. According to Merriam-Webster, while the first New Year’s celebrations began around 4,000 years ago, the concept of New Year's resolutions only began around the 17th century. For the past 200 years, resolutions have been made with the intention of bettering ourselves, and your kids should get in on it too!

As adults, encouraging children to get into the same spirit by making meaningful New Year's resolutions can help set them up for a lifetime of success. Making resolutions can help them understand the importance of planning and goal-setting and teach them that it’s okay to make mistakes and learn from them.

Make this new year the perfect opportunity to instil healthy habits, exciting experiences, and positive attitudes into their lives. Read our take on how to make good new year resolutions with your kids to ensure that 2023 is their best year yet! From knowing the importance of new year's resolutions for kids, setting them, and practical resolution ideas, we’re here to help you with it all!

 

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Importance of Making Good New Year’s Resolutions with Your Kids

When you get your child involved in the tradition of making good new year’s resolutions, it’ll lead to many benefits, including:

1. Strengthen Your Child-Parent Bond

Teach your kids the importance of New Year's resolutions by making it a family tradition. Gather together each December and chat about your successes and aspirations, individually and as a family. Help your child reflect on what worked for them over the past year, and where they can improve.

By creating this tradition, you'll give your little ones an important lesson on setting and keeping goals. Starting the conversation on resolutions in December with your kids allows you to connect and get to know each other better.

 

2. Enable You To Be a Role Model

No matter your child's age, they can benefit, appreciate, and understand the importance of goal setting when you take the lead. You are their role model, so they are watching and learning from you, use this opportunity to promote healthy habits and well-being. So, why not make a resolution together?

For example, some New Year's resolutions can include drinking more water and challenging your child to do the same. Or, if you find yourself checking your emails when you should be spending quality time as a family, make it a goal to keep your phone away when you get home and remind them to keep their screens away until after dinner. You can even teach your child the art of mindful eating by taking a New Year's resolution of cutting down on junk food and following a healthy lifestyle.

 

3. Make a Positive Impact on Kids

Children are full of potential and will thrive when given the opportunity to reach their goals. Having a good New Year’s resolution allows them to focus on something small but meaningful, like pledging to read more, maintaining a journal or going outside more often. This also gives them something tangible they can work towards throughout the year, whether earning an allowance or getting better grades in school.

Making New Year’s resolutions with kids is also beneficial because it encourages quality family time while fostering communication between parents and children.

 

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Ways to Help Your Child Stick to Their Resolutions

Although it's an exciting and fun family activity to make simple New Year's resolutions, they can quickly become tedious for children when not being practised properly. Here are some ways to help your child make a successful New Year resolution:

1. Suggest But Don’t Decide for Them

Hear what your kids have to say! Ask them about what they want for themselves, and come up with a few broad categories to guide the conversation, like friendship, new skills, and school goals. Don't be quick to dismiss what they want. Be open to what's important to them. It's a great way to connect with your kids and get an insight into their thinking.

 

2. Set Achievable Goals

If you are wondering how to make New Year resolutions that will last, make sure you and your child are making realistic goals. Ask them what they'd like to achieve to ensure their goals are meaningful and relevant to them. Then break the goal into small achievable steps.

Get some inspiration on setting New Year resolutions you can actually achieve with our resourceful guide.

 

3. Use Encouragement

Be positive when setting New Year's resolutions for your kids. Every day is a fresh chance to try something new and reinvent yourself. Try to use a positive tone when discussing their goals for the year ahead, focus on the successes they achieved last year and the areas where they can improve.

 

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4. Keep The List Manageable

It is better to choose some New Year's resolutions rather than many to teach your child the importance of focusing on a limited number of targets for success. So, help your kid to choose two to three resolutions for the year.

 

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Good Ideas for New Year Resolutions for Different Ages

Based on your child’s age, here are some good New Year’s resolution ideas to follow this year:

1. For Pre-schoolers

• I will wash my hands with soap before and after eating and after using the washroom.
• I will brush my teeth twice a day.
• I will finish all of the food on my plate.

 

2. For Pre-teens

• I will try to eat fruits and vegetables regularly.
• I will limit my soda intake.
• I will spend more time outdoors and less time on screens
• I will learn one new hobby this year

 

3. For Young Adults

• I will work out to feel better about my body, not because I want to be thinner.
• I will compliment someone daily.
• I will read at least one book a month.

 

Remember, Resolutions May Not Go As Planned

Despite our best efforts, sometimes our resolutions don't go as planned. If something gets in the way of your child's goals, use it as a lesson in flexibility. Help your child build resilience by teaching them how to adjust and pivot when life throws an unexpected curve. Transform disappointments into learning experiences and guide them as they navigate their New Year's resolutions.

 

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