A new study has come out recently stating that preschool aged children have a sense of fairness already. Even children as young as three years old are willing to share with other children, and work together to accomplish a task that will benefit everyone. Is your child fair?
I think about this a lot with my daughter. She is almost five, and about to embark on Kindergarten, and I want her to be kind, and sharing, and fair. So, if she most likely already has a sense of fairness, the question is, how can I get her to recognize when she is not being fair?
She has a little brother, so sharing is something that she has to do regularly. So, she is definitely aware of what sharing means, but does she understand that sometimes, it is also fair to share? I think she does, but probably just needs reminding of why things are fair. But, life isn’t fair. So, when children get older, and have more interaction with the outside world, they definitely learn this lesson very quickly. It’s sad to say.
I heard a true story in church on Sunday that I wanted to share. A couple was doing some missionary work in Africa. As they arrived at their first destination, they were greeted by a curious little boy who wanted to know what was going on. The wife, handed him a piece of butterscotch candy. He was thrilled! They went about their business, and upon leaving, were greeted by more than a dozen kids with eager eyes. She was disappointed to gesture to them that she had no more candy. The little boy handed her his piece of candy back, and gestured for her to unwrap it. To her surprise, as she handed it back to him, he did not pop it in his mouth, but passed it around the circle of friends, allowing each one to take a lick before it was all gone. Occasionally, he took a lick himself. Gross right? But, how sweet too.
If our children understand the principle of fairness, then it is our responsibility to teach them how to put that principle into action. While, we may not encourage them to go to the extreme of sharing licks of a single piece of candy with their friends, we can teach them that sometimes, sacrificing and sharing is the best answer, and the most fair.
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