Anonymous wrote:For the posters who recommend Girl Scouts, how would you say it specially has improved confidence in your daughters? I was a Girl Scout and my daughter has been one since kindergarten and I honestly do not see how anything they do would truly raise anyone's confidence.

I'm not the person who recommended Girl Scouts, but I am a Girl Scout leader. I think some of the more old fashioned Girl Scouting activities (traditional skill building activities where you work up to demonstrating competence) could be very helpful in developing self confidence. Think of things like preparing for and going on a substantial hike, learning to read maps and use a compass, learning to hike at night, building a fire, even when wood is wet or survival skills like fire by friction; learning to kayak or canoe, setting up a tent by yourself, even in the rain; learning to identify trees, birds, rocks, mammals, insects; and learning how to protect your environment; -- outdoorsy skills like those would help a girl work in a group to accomplish significant things.

The new Girl Scout program doesn't seem to have or require a lot of these skills though. So you can't assume Girl Scouts will help here unless you get an old fashioned leader.

For the posters who recommend Girl Scouts, how would you say it specially has improved confidence in your daughters? I was a Girl Scout and my daughter has been one since kindergarten and I honestly do not see how anything they do would truly raise anyone's confidence.

I second the recommendation for the American Girl Smart girl guides. Also, nothing is better than aunt who takes an interest in you!

Might be for slightly older, but the book:
Savvy

It's fiction

I highly recommend http://buildingconfidenceblueprint.com

Queen Bees and Wannabes

Book for both the mom and daughter to read

OP - perhaps get your niece's mom the book Little Girls Can Be Mean. I have a DD that age in 3rd grade and my formerly confident child has had a lot of social ups and downs this year and this book really helped me. It has sections for your niece to read, but also gives explicit instructions to the parent on how to talk to your niece and be a resource to help her learn to work through social issues that start arising now and in some instance even earlier.

Anonymous wrote:There is a program by the same person, or maybe one of his children, by the person who wrote the 7 Habits series, Stephen Covey. They use it at some elementary schools, and it is supposed to be fantastic. The program is called "The Leader in Me". I'm not sure if there is a book version that is suitable for an individual child, or if it is just the program that schools can use, but I'd definitely look into that.

Not OP but I'm so happy I read this gem. Thank you!

My 11 y.o. DD says a book called "Rebound Time" helps with confidence. (even if your niece doesn't play basketball)

My thoughts: American Girl has amazing books. Books about her body and manners and all sorts of stuff; worth searching and seeing what they have.

And also, their historical book series is great. Josephina, Abbie, Kit, Molly…not really about confidence per se but helps show not only how girls lived through history, but how they handle problems.

Finally, as an aside, I think confidence is gained when one has an opportunity to impress one's self. So giving someone an opportunity to try and succeed at something does wonders. I've watched it with my DDs. Not sure what that would be with your niece, but off the top of my head, there's a one lesson beginning archery program at Bull Run that I was looking to sign my kids up for...