Thinking about your child struggling to fit in with other
children or seeing them upset after conflicts with friends is a worry that most
parents will face. It is normal for children to face some sort of social
problem at one point or another and most of the time they will be able to
resolve these issues on their own. However, if you feel that your child needs
extra guidance, your support can help them navigate the sometimes tricky task
of maintaining healthy friendships. With the help of these tips from an independent school in London, you can
help your child to polish their social skills and deal with conflict.
Encourage Empathy
Teaching your child how to empathise with others will give
them the foundation they need to develop effective social skills and cultivate
successful relationships. Discuss various situations and ask your child how
they might feel or react in each one. This could include seeing another child
fall over at breaktime or witnessing someone being bullied, by getting your
child to consider how these situations would make them feel it encourages them
to recognise these emotions in others, allowing them to effectively deal with
these situations as and when they arise.
Validation and Reflection
If your child is upset after a conflict with a friend,
encourage them to open up to you about it. Whilst talking through the issue try
and be as sympathetic as possible and show your child that their feelings are
valid and important to you. Once they have talked through their own feelings,
get them to consider how the situation may have made the other child feel, and
possible reasons why the issue may have arisen to begin with. Talking through
the situation will enable your child to revisit the incident with a fresh
perspective. Gently suggest the idea that the other party may view the
situation differently and encourage your child to understand the other persons
point of view.
Working Through It
To help your child address and hopefully resolve an issue
they are facing, role play is a brilliant tool. Have your child pretend you are
the person they are having issues with and ask them to explain their point of
view and how they are feeling. This will prepare them to approach the situation
in real life in a constructive manner whilst keeping a cap on their emotions.
After they have reflected on the incident and practiced how they would like to
communicate their feelings, suggest they try and talk through the situation
with the other party and encourage them to be respectful and patient when
listening to the other persons point of view.
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