How Does The Child Create Their Body Image?
During childhood, every human being begins to create his body image. This will be part of the self-concept and will be closely related to self-esteem.
When creating their body image, the child builds on the information they receive from their closest environment, in stages. For example, in the first years of life, the important thing is to teach the child to understand himself as an individual and not as an extension of his parents.
Afterwards, the parts of the body (nose, mouth, hands, eyes, etc.) are identified so that she can learn to identify them in her own body and to recognize them in others. Furthermore, knowledge of the parts of the body allows the child to identify himself as a human being and not as an animal, plant or object.
Later, when attending school, children begin to develop even more the concept of their body image. Like? Through different opinions about what is pleasing to the eye or not, what is more common and so on.
Your body image in the classroom
In the classroom, the knowledge received at home about the human body will be reinforced. Through different dynamics, teaching prioritizes the achievement of the following objectives:
- Knowing body parts and shapes, school internship.
- Correctly name each of them.
- Differentiate the characteristics of body parts.
- Locate each body part.
- Start recognizing the most visible and functional parts.
A possible order in which the child can learn to identify the most visible parts are: head, face, arms, hands, legs, feet, genitalia, fingers, belly, nose, mouth, ears, eyes, teeth, cheeks, lips, chin and elbows.
Learn to distinguish and identify body parts
Another aspect they should learn is height, thickness and color. On the other hand, they can identify the shapes that each of the parts has as follows: soft and hard, pointed and rounded, pairs and unique, immobile and mobile.
The teacher will plan children’s games that are related to the way the child creates their body image. Some of these activities might include drawing pictures of their bodies. They are suitable for children aged 5 to 6 years.
There are different games according to the child’s age and the year he is studying. But from the age of 2, you start to stimulate knowledge of your body image in a positive way.
In general, these games consist of mentioning, touching and identifying the body part in a dynamic and fun way.
Your body image with a realistic view
Your body image, the culture in which you were raised, family values and experiences with your body will influence. All of these situations can specify a person’s relationship to himself.
It is vital to help the child to have a realistic image of himself, with self-acceptance of his characteristics. Also, be willing to change a few things for the good of your body as it is for better health.
important aspects
Over time, a person’s image can vary due to changes in their circumstances and also depending on age. However, these changes should not affect the child’s concept of his own image.
When entering pre-adolescence, they may have changes in their body caused by growth, which leads them to reject themselves because of the way they see their body.
Creating a positive body image
You must teach your child to value the different functions and benefits of their body. In addition, she must learn to strengthen her self-esteem in terms of various skills and abilities, so that she learns to value herself.
Ask your child how he feels about his image being with others. Does he reject the appearance of your body or not? Tell her that the stereotypes of beauty promoted by advertising don’t match reality.
Promote acceptance and recognition of bodily differences between people, according to age, culture and context.
Don’t give more importance to the physical aspect than the spiritual. On the other hand, do not criticize people who are overweight or underweight in front of the child. You also shouldn’t highlight negative aspects of the child’s body.
In short, how does the child create their body image? It will depend on how you teach it from childhood. The best way for a child to feel good is to highlight their positive aspects and praise in the right way.
