One of the most important things that we can teach our children is kindness. This is such an important thing for each person to learn. There are times in everyone’s life when a simple act of kindness has made a big difference in how they felt about themselves. Children can learn at a young age to be kind to others. While I know that you can not make people be friends with each other, you can encourage your children to be more accepting of others.
One way to teach kindness is to demonstrate it to your children. As you refrain from speaking negatively about others, your children will notice this. As they become teenagers they may discuss this with you. Your children will see the kind acts that you do for others and they will learn from your example.
If you have younger children, you can encourage them to include everyone at the playground in their games. It can be very hurtful to be excluded simply because you are a boy or a girl or have the wrong color of shirt on. While you do not have the ability to shield your children from these types of situations, you can teach your child how to respond kindly. You can teach your child to include the other children or to choose a different game to play. I have talked to my daughter about this several times, and she has started including people whom she can tell feel left out.
Also the types of games that children play can be negative. A common child’s game is everyone run from the bad guy/monster. If the child, who is the monster, wants to be, then it is okay. If he doesn’t want to be, then you should teach your child to not play the game. It can be difficult for a child to suggest to his friends a different game to play, but it really helps to build up his skills when it comes time to stand up for his beliefs.
Another important thing to do is to foster the natural kindness that your child innately has. Children are concerned when they see others who are sad or hurt. They like to do nice things for others. You can praise your children when you see them helping others. You can help them make cards or presents to cheer up sick friends. You can teach them how to reach out and comfort others when they need it.
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