Vision Boards Can Support Youth with Goals

Vision boards – a tool for supporting children in keeping goals in mind – can serve as a powerful visual reminder of the importance of hard work and responsibility. When displayed in an important place at home, vision boards can help children to keep their goals in mind every day!

Almost all children hold firmly the belief that wishes really do come true, no matter what you ask for. Young folks often sincerely believe that shooting stars bring ponies and that wishing wells turn up time machines. Generally, though, children grow out of this belief at a certain point, as developmental shifts take place and their understanding of the world becomes more grounded in reality. However, believing in wishes doesn’t necessarily have to be something that children let go of entirely as they get older. While they must, of course, learn to stop expecting unicorns and superheroes, they can be supported in learning to wish for reasonable things and to work towards making that wish come true on their own. 

A useful tool in this process is a vision board. Sometimes misunderstood as a tool used by disillusioned folks who think that by surrounding themselves by what they want they’ll somehow magically get it, vision boards are actually a tool used to help people keep in mind what their hopes, dreams, and goals are – within reason. Designed as a visual tool that serves a reminder of wishes for the future and attainable goals, vision boards can be used to help children keep in mind what it is that they wish to achieve. In reminding themselves of attainable goals, children will then be encouraged to be responsible for taking the steps necessary in order to achieve their goals.

Vision boards can be created in many different ways, and while they may often include text elements, they are largely visual. Families can create vision boards together using large paper or poster board, old magazines and newspapers, and other materials that offer useful images and words. When beginning to make a vision board, it is best to know what you’re planning to include – so before collaging or drawing, families should discuss their personal goals and write them down. This will help to provide a guide for the creation process, allowing creators to search carefully through their materials to search for useful images and words.

Once vision boards have been created, families should display them in prominent places – either in bedrooms or in a shared family space that is used frequently so that the powerful and meaningful visuals can serve as daily reminders of optimism for and achievement in the future!

[Photo credit: (cc) Seeking Sense]