MyTeacherToolsWe’d all like for our children to be compassionate and kind towards others. Unlike many other skills, it can be a difficult task to teach. It involves having an awareness of those around you, an understanding of emotions, why someone may feel the way that they do and supporting them. It’s a valuable skill though and one which they will need to be a sociable and friendly individual. We’ve teamed up with a private school in Devon to share some tips on how you can raise a compassionate child below.
Reflection
You can start by encouraging your child to reflect and think about how they feel. Feeling happy feels distinctly different to when we feel sad or annoyed and learning the difference can actually be quite useful for children in developing empathy. They will be able to look back on how they themselves felt and potentially recognise the signs.
Point to Them
Another way is to clearly point them out so that they can start building associations between feelings and the facial expressions that we display. You can also use this as an opportunity to teach them how to be supportive. For example, if one of their friends is upset that they can’t play with their toys, you can suggest that they share and lend them toys that they don’t use.
You may want to role play situations too. Whether you choose to act out the role or use their toys, it’s completely up to you. It will present them with different types of social situations and give them the opportunity to practise their response.
Set a Good Example
And of course, you. You have the biggest influence on your child as you’re their parent and who they look up to. If you’re kind and sympathetic towards others, your child will learn to be the same and vice versa.
