Teaching young children to empathize means teaching them to care about other people's feelings and to be able to think about things from the other person's point of view. Empathy is a complex thing to teach young children, but by setting a good example and support, this ability will develop over time.
Step
Method 1 of 3: Talking about Empathy
Step 1. Give a name to each feeling
Show your child when you're angry, or if someone else is angry and explain how to identify these feelings (through loud voices, angry expressions, etc.). Do the same for feelings of happiness, sadness, surprise, jealousy, and other emotions that come to mind.
Use every opportunity to draw your child's attention to different emotions. For example, if someone is sitting alone and looks sad, tell your child, "That man is sitting alone on a park bench. He must be feeling lonely."
Step 2. Praise your child if they show empathy
Pay special attention to your child's behavior if they show empathy for doing something nice for someone else. You can say:
- "It's very kind of you to lend a toy to your friend. This is sure to make your friends happy. Mom/Dad saw him laughing.”
- Appreciating your child for being able to empathize can develop a natural sense of empathy within them over time.
Step 3. Develop morality in your child
Explain to your child that bad behavior will affect other people. For example, explain to your child that if they don't lend a toy, their friend will be upset. Or let them know that you will get angry if they are mean or mean to their brother or sister.
Your child will be able to put themselves in someone else's shoes and become more empathetic by understanding the consequences of their actions and realizing that their behavior can have negative consequences for others
Step 4. Ask your child what other people would think or feel
If you know that your child has seen something bad happen to someone, ask your child what they think about this person's feelings. For example, if your child sees another child dropping his ice cream, ask your child "how would you feel if that happened to you?"
Step 5. Encourage your child to make statements with the words "I
Explain to your child that if something is bothering them, they should express their feelings clearly, instead of blaming someone else.
- For example, instead of saying "You ruined my toy!" teach them to say “I am sad and disappointed that you ruined my toy.”
- This will help your child recognize their own feelings and enable them to communicate better with others.
Step 6. Help your child develop caring
The key to empathy is showing concern for the other person, so you should try to cultivate this feeling in your child.
- For example, if your child says that a friend of theirs isn't going to school, ask them about it. Ask, "Why isn't your friend going to school? Is he sick?"
- After that, you can teach your child to make "Get well soon" greeting cards for their sick schoolmates and help them send these cards. Activities like these can teach your child to show care and concern for others.
Method 2 of 3: Giving Examples
Step 1. Show empathy for your child
Your child will have a hard time learning to empathize if you just talk. Therefore, it is highly recommended that you teach your child by example and really show them what empathy means.
- Show empathy for your child by showing concern and sympathy when they hurt themselves or if they are sad. You can say "Be happy. Mom/Dad will feel sad when they see you sad."
- If your child sees this behavior through you, they will be able to show empathy when interacting with others, initially out of habit, but later because of their genuine emotions.
Step 2. Respect your child's opinion
Let your child know that you are always listening to them and value their opinion on things. In this way, your child not only learns to respect themselves, but also learns how to respect the opinions of others.
Step 3. Teach your child how to find common ground with other people
Do they like the same games, do they have the same hobbies, are they afraid of watching horror movies? In this way, they will learn how to find common ground between their own feelings and those of others in certain situations, and make them more capable of empathizing.
Step 4. Teach your child to see things from the other person's point of view
Present a problem to your child from another person's point of view, and ask your child to put themselves in that person's shoes.
For example, if there is a little girl playing alone, ask your child to imagine how this little girl would feel if your child were this little girl. Does your child want to invite other children to play together?
Step 5. Teach your child to listen
Use the following phrases to teach your child the importance of being a good listener:
- “You have two ears and one mouth. This is because you have to listen twice as much as you talk.”
- Educating your child to be a good listener will help them get to know others better and make them more empathetic.
Step 6. Encourage your child to do fun things for other people
This can be done by helping their fathers tend to the garden, or visiting their grandparents.
- But if your child really wants to do something good, they can participate in charities such as a cake bazaar or fun run.
- Activities like these will help your child develop a sense of responsibility towards others and find the satisfaction of being able to help others around them.
Step 7. Don't forget your child's feelings
While you want your child to be empathetic and kind to others, they shouldn't allow others to put them down. Your child should understand that their feelings are important too and they should be able to show their stand when needed.
Method 3 of 3: Using Games
Step 1. Teach your child about facial expressions and nonverbal cues
Show different facial expressions and ask your child to name what emotion you are showing. Alternatively, you can draw facial expressions on a piece of paper. Your child's ability to recognize certain emotions when they see them will help them respond appropriately and show empathy.
Step 2. Try to pay attention to people
Sit with your child in a cafe or on a park bench watching the passers-by. Ask your child to guess what these people are feeling based on their facial expressions and body language.
- Take this game further by asking your child for suggestions on what they would do to entertain the person. For example, if you see a little girl crying in the park, ask your child what they would do to comfort the little girl.
- Give answers like "I'm going to take this little girl to play with me" or "I'm going to hug her."
Step 3. Play a role play
Have your kids play by pretending that you're a pirate, warrior, princess, or whatever you like. By acting, your child will learn how to express their feelings verbally and nonverbally, and know how to respond to the feelings of others.
Step 4. Teach your child to wait their turn
Teaching your child to wait their turn at play is a great way for children to work on their feelings and impatience, and show respect for the time and feelings of others.
Choose a game in groups and let each child wait their turn while the others play. This game can be anything, from playing cranks to karaoke competitions
Step 5. Use dolls to play
Playing with dolls can help your child develop empathy in a fun way. Through dolls, you can teach them how to care for the needs of others, provide clothes, provide food, and so on.
Step 6. Take care of plants or take care of animals
Invite your children to plant seeds and ask them to be responsible for caring for these plants to grow. They have to water it, make sure it gets enough sun, and pull out weeds.
- Older children can even be held responsible for taking care of their pets, feeding, playing and walking their pets.
- This activity will teach your child to put the needs of one person or another above their own.
Step 7. Invite your child to play “feelings of the week
“Choose a feeling and stick it on the fridge door. Then for a week, ask your child to point to this feeling if they have experienced it themselves or have seen someone else feel it.
Step 8. Use a picture book
Picture books on the theme of helping and caring for others can be helpful in explaining empathy to your child.
- Show your child the characters in this picture book and ask your child to guess what this character is feeling and why.
- What cues indicate that someone is happy, angry, or jealous?
