How to Raise a Compassionate Child – How do you teach young children compassion? All children are capable of understanding emotion and displaying kindness. To begin with they must have an awareness of what’s going on around them, and emotional intelligence (an understanding of different emotions and what they look like). Significant emotional learning takes place in their first few years of life, and by the age of 3, children are able to correctly label emotions, and identify them in social situations.
Below is some advice from a private prep school in London on how you can help your child along this journey.
How to Raise a Compassionate Child – Start By Pointing Them Out Around You
So that your child can become familiar with what different emotions look like, and social cues, point them out in real life, as well as TV when they appear. This will help your child to recognise body language to look out for and in turn help them to become a better communicator.
How to Raise a Compassionate Child – Demonstrate Compassion
You can also demonstrate what compassionate behaviour looks like by providing your child examples of how you respond to social situations in your own life. While this seems like a small step, children learn behaviours from their parents so you will need to be mindful of how you come across and be a good role model.
How to Raise a Compassionate Child – Practice
Practice is needed for children to develop these skills, so you may choose to role play the sorts of encounters they will likely experience. You should also look for opportunities where they will be able to interact with other children, like play dates, where they can develop these particular social skills.
How to Raise a Compassionate Child – Highlight Right and Wrong
In addition to teaching children about good behaviour, you must condone the bad so that your child doesn’t get confused by mixed messages and refrains from unkind behaviours. Understandably you can’t control every situation, and for those outside of your control, discuss what they’ve seen and explain why it’s wrong.
How to Raise a Compassionate Child- Considering Others’ Emotions
It’s unlikely that you will be able to train your child on how to deal with every situation they face, so they will need to use their instincts. What will help with this is teaching children to put themselves in others’ shoes.
How to Raise a Compassionate Child – Have Patience
Patience is also just as important. Children develop at their own pace so you will need to stay consistent in your efforts and be mindful that it can take them a little longer than others. If you do have any concerns however about your child’s development, you should speak to your GP who will be able to make suggestions and provide help.
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