4 Natural Behaviors You Should Allow Your Child to Do

Mothers often try to prevent their children from doing certain actions out of fear or overprotection. However, many of these actions are normal parts of child development and should be encouraged rather than stopped.

Here are 4 natural behaviors that indicate healthy growth and help your child develop important skills:

1. Letting Your Child Hold and Eat Food by Themselves

Many mothers refuse to let their child hold food or use a spoon, fearing mess or spills.
Letting your child hold finger foods and eventually use utensils helps develop hand muscles, coordination, and independence.
Encourage your child to eat alone to boost their confidence, self-care skills, and self-discipline.
Involve them at the table with family and provide child-friendly utensils.

2. Playing with Sand, Water, and Clay

Messy play like sand, water, and clay is important for developing motor skills, sensory awareness, creativity, and brain coordination.
Allow your child to get their hands dirty as it helps their brain and body work together.
Clay (modeling dough) especially helps calm the child and improves fine motor control when used carefully.

3. Going Outside Daily

Don’t limit outdoor trips to once a week or only on holidays.
Daily outings expose your child to social interactions and language, which are crucial for speech development and cognitive skills.
Hearing conversations, seeing lip movements, and being in social environments enrich their vocabulary and reduce speech issues.
Outdoor activities also prevent social withdrawal and behavioral problems.

4. Running in Open Spaces

Running is a natural next step after walking and helps your child develop physical strength, coordination, and endurance.
It boosts heart health, bone strength, muscle development, mood, and self-confidence.
Encourage running games to teach discipline, rules, and responsibility for their health and well-being.
Running is an important physical activity with multiple benefits: physical, mental, emotional, and social.

In short: Instead of restricting these natural behaviors out of fear or concern, support and encourage them as they are essential for your child’s healthy growth and development.