The Phrases That Work

Replace evaluative praise with descriptive praise: name what the child did, the strategy they tried, or the persistence you saw. That teaches them to judge effort from evidence, not applause.

Other powerful phrases include: "What did you learn from that?" after a failure, "I trust your judgment" when they face a decision, and "Tell me more about how you did that" to develop metacognition. Each phrase communicates belief in their capacity.