Children are the future, and what better way to help give your child their best start in life than helping to boost their IQ? As a parent, it is a significant and often sobering responsibility to help children grow and mature; if you want to help your child’s IQ get a boost early on in life, take a closer look at these 8 ways you can help increase your child’s IQ.
How to Expand Children’s IQs
A child’s intelligence is based on a number of factors. It is stated that a Child’s brain does the most growing by the age of 7, therefore, Children’s brains are growing and developing at an exponential rate by the time that they reach kindergarten, so those early years are essential for helping to create the building blocks for more advanced intelligent development later on.
The ways to expand children’s IQs can be surprising for many parents, who assume that “cramming” facts into children is the best way to boost intelligence. On the contrary, boosting IQ is typically done through experiences and emotional and social connections that allow the brain to develop essential pathways and foundations for more advanced skills later on in life.
8 Ways to Boost Kid’s IQ
The following are 8 excellent ways that you can boost your child’s IQ.
1. Avoid electronic toys as much as possible
Studies have shown that playing with non-electronic toys is better for cognitive development when compared to electronic toys because electronic toys do not encourage creative thinking and problem-solving.
When your child uses an electronic toy, they are effectively been spoon-fed information; with non-electronic toys, they are the ones directing the information. Opt for non-electronic classic toys like blocks, dolls, figures, trains or car sets, and so on rather than electronic games or sets.
The key is to find toys that encourage your child to direct the game, rather than being directed by an electronic toy.
2. Let your child be bored
It’s common in modern parenting to think that children should never be bored and should be constantly stimulated by some external factors, whether it’s a movie, toys, or interaction with their parents.
However, boredom can be beneficial for children’s cognitive development. The reason for this is because boredom encourages children to keep themselves occupied, which will result in free play that is not directed by an external source.
Studies have shown that free play promotes the growth of the cerebral cortex, improves memory, and helps children learn more effectively. If you have trouble letting your kid be bored, try creating a scheduled “boredom time” where you allow your child to find something to do on their own.
3. Surround your child with books
Books, books–and more books are some of the keys to boosting your child’s IQ.
One of the best analogies for what reading will do to your child’s brain is this: reading is for brain development as barbells are to muscle growth. If you want your child to have a higher IQ, better memory, stronger literacy skills, and other cognitive benefits, then start reading to them as early as possible.
Children who regularly read books have a higher IQ compared to children who don’t. In addition to reading regularly to your child, encourage your child to love books by surrounding them with books in your home.
Have a short, child accessible shelf that your child can reach when they want to pick out a book; encourage them to begin reading early with reading programs; and make sure you lead by example!
Children who see their parents read for fun are more likely to associate with reading for fun on their own.
4. Expose your child to different experiences
Children’s brain development requires plenty of new experiences and situations in order to thrive.
You can help boost your child’s IQ by routinely exposing them to all sorts of different experiences, such as taking them to museums, nature walks, restaurants, festivals; anything that exposes them to a new and interesting environment can be beneficial for their brain.
You can even encourage your child to come up with places to visit, as this will help foster their curiosity.
5. Stock up on crafts
Doing crafts is a great way to encourage children to engage in creative play that helps boost their IQ and even helps with other skills such as motor skill development.
Crafts can include paints, musical instruments, construction paper, play-doh or craft clay, and anything else to keep their hands occupied.
6. Ask your children their opinion
One of the keys behind developing your child’s higher IQ is to encourage them to think–and this can be done by asking them for their opinion on a variety of topics.
For example, if they ask you why the grass is green, ask them why they think the grass is green.
Even if their answer is incorrect, this type of cognitive thinking is important for increasing IQ and helping them develop independent thoughts and critical thinking skills.
7. Let your child do hard things (within reason)
You can help increase your child’s IQ by allowing them to do hard things on their own rather than always doing it for them—within reason, of course, with age and safety kept in mind.
For example, let’s say your child says they want to plant a garden. Don’t buy everything and do it for them: find ways for them to earn money, and then show them the right way to plant it.
This type of experience is a great way to boost their IQ while showing them the practical results of their hard work.
8. Don’t “dumb down” your language all the time
You don’t need to talk like an academic scholar, but studies have shown that parents who talk to their children like people—rather than talking to them like babies or as if they are incapable of understanding various concepts—actually give a boost to their child’s IQ and other cognitive development.
Explain things to your child when you see them, and allow them to ask questions even if they may not totally understand the answer.
Final Thoughts
As a parent, you are no doubt dedicated to helping your child get the best start in life that they can.
If you want to help your child by increasing their IQ, consider the above 8 ways that you can help boost their IQ with relatively simple actions that will have significant results for your child’s future.
