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january 2016 | brparents.com 47 3 have an attitude of gratitude. to teach your
child
how to be kind, show them how others have been kind to you, and then pay it forward. we have all been recipients of other people?s generos- ity at some point whether it is someone bringing a meal to your family when you are sick, or your community rallying to- gether to pay for your
child
ren
?s school supplies because someone in your family lost a job. use these examples to talk to your chil- dren about the significance of kind acts, however small or large. ask them ques- tions about how these scenarios make them feel, and let them play a part in de- ciding on how to show gratitude by giv- ing back. by using these moments and involving your
child
in the conversa- tion, the lesson becomes deeper than just teaching the golden rule: the
child
is ac- tually living it. 4 broaden your
child
?s
circle
of care. most
child
ren already care about their own
circle
of friends and family. but what about those outside the
circle
? dr. davis says, ?people, even young chil- dren, fall naturally into groups based on shared interests. ?ere is the likelihood of tension surrounding these groups as ?cliques? are formed. it is not unusual for bullying to follow.? whether it?s teaching your
child
ren to al- ways speak out if they see someone being bullied, or encouraging them to asking the new kid at school to play with them, encourage your
child
ren to broaden their
circle
. how do you personally get along with people you don?t like? do you talk nega- tively when they are not around? keep in mind, young eyes are always learning from your examples within your own cir- cle of care and outside of it. 5 keep a watchful eye on social media. on any given day, tweens and teens in the u.s. spend about six to nine hours using screen-time for their enjoyment. because of this,
child
ren and adolescents are doing the majority of their communi- cation online instead of face-to-face, re- sulting in
child
ren not developing social skills and empathy. dr. davis suggests that parents have their
child
?s passwords, and to monitor his or her online activity. if a
child
sees a friend acting hateful toward another friend, discuss those moments with your
child
, and be sure to reinforce the positive examples your
child
sees while online. ? here are five strategies for raising empathetic, thoughtful
child
ren:
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