Empathy is the understanding of or sensitivity to others feelings and experiences. It is a developing trait across childhood and can greatly vary between children based on age, predisposition and experiences. There are several ways parents can coach the component pieces of emotion language and perspective taking. Coach Emotion Language – Children being able to … Continue reading Encouraging Children’s Empathy
Does your child get anxious, angry or frustrated easily? In the moment, it’s often best to err on the side of support; rather than, challenging or giving logic and reason as an answer to their emotion. It’s often helpful to acknowledge the emotion, provide empathy and give time and space to let a child calm … Continue reading Helping a Child Learn to Calm Down
It’s okay for your child to be frustrated. It’s okay when your child is disappointed. This is not something for you to avoid or fix for them. It is something for you to connect with, and to help them move through. A dad of a four-year-old questioned, “we have a routine when we run to … Continue reading It’s Okay for Your Child to be Frustrated
When children are young Model apologies – Young children learn best through modeling. When you are in the wrong about things, apologize to them and others easily. If they see and hear you being comfortable with apologies, they are more likely to follow suit. Suggest and encourage apologies – I have read that others suggest … Continue reading Ways to Teach Apologies and Avoid Forcing Them
When children are tantrumming often, parents just want it to stop. Part of stopping tantrums is working to prevent them in the first place. Teaching your child emotion language and knowing their triggers and cues can go a long way towards prevention. Children need emotion language to better express their upsets. When they can label … Continue reading Preventing Tantrums : Emotion Language, Triggers and Cues
Children can easily feel overwhelmed by other people’s emotional displays. This is especially the case if they feel responsible for the other’s negative emotions. This is often the set-up in a parent-child discipline exchange. Child misbehaves, parent feels angry, child feels responsible for parent’s anger. When children feel overwhelmed by other’s emotions, a natural defense mechanism is to … Continue reading Do Your Children Get Silly When You Are Angry?
Teaching children to be kind to others is part of teaching them about managing emotions and social interactions, and part of teaching them about a bigger sense of empathy. Children choosing to act with kindness towards others leads to fewer conflicts and better relationships. I posted these ideas on a D.C. Urban Moms forum post … Continue reading Encouraging Children to be Kind
In my Positive Discipline workshop series, we spend three hours on the steps of positive discipline. This language provides a framework for effectively working through a discipline exchange from managing emotions with I messages and empathy to using choices and consequences. I have written about the steps and given examples of each in several previous … Continue reading Guidelines for Using the Steps of Discipline
Empathy is the child’s ability to recognize and understand another’s emotions. This is a gradually developing trait throughout the childhood years. While young toddlers may react to others’ emotions, their ability to understand those emotions or recognize the other person is having a separate experience is limited. To support their growing sense of empathy, parents … Continue reading Teaching Children Empathy
Following an upset in her bedroom, an older daughter storms into the kitchen saying, “I hate her! She is always ruining my stuff!” Unfortunately, common parent responses include giving logic or reason, “she is younger than you, you have to be patient,” or a demand, “she is your sister, she is going to be your best friend … Continue reading Allow Negative Emotions Between Siblings
Parenting by Dr. Rene 