I’m trying so hard to raise my two kids (7 and 4) to be kind, empathetic humans but it’s frustrating when they don’t seem to get it. The one that’s 7 acts like his younger sister’s feelings don’t matter, and the other oneis still in the everything’s mine phase. I try to model empathy, but I dunno. We’ve talked about kindness, shared books about it. How do you teach kids to care about others when they’re so wrapped up in their own worlds?
Hey Kevin, I get where you’re coming from. My daughter went through a similar phase, and it was tough to break through that me first mentality. One thing that helped was practicing empathy with real life examples. When she’d see someone upset, whether a family member or even a character on TV we ask things like how do you think they’re feeling? and what can we do to make them feel better?
It hink this helps them understand the connection between emotions and actions. I also started giving her small responsibilities like helping set the table so she could see how her actions affected others. Empathy takes time to develop.
I’m right there with you. Trying to teach kids empathy i s hard especially when their still so young. My two boys also struggle with understanding that their actions impact others. It’s hard not to get discouraged but I try to remind myself that they’re still learning and it’s our job to keep showing them the way.
THX everyone, it’s good to hear I’m not alone in this! Using real life moments to teach empathy seems like it would work. I need to be patient and keep at it. I’ll definitely start asking more questions about how they think others feel hopefully that helps them see beyond themselves a little more.
Lolll, I’m laughing because I feel this. My 5 year old literally told me yesterday that sharing is for babies while grabbing a toy from their sibling. I was like, really?! I thought I was raising a compassionate little angel but apparently they didn’t get the memo, lol. I’ve started doing something silly that surprisingly works… whenever they’re mean or selfish, I pretend to cry like a super dramatic soap opera actor. It catches them off guard and they actually stop to comfort me, haha. It just helps to break the cycle in the moment. Toddlers are sooo self centered and we just have to slowly chip away at it while they grow out of it.