“It’s Mine!”―Ways to Teach Your Young Ones About Sharing

A two-year-old and four-year-old receiving child care in Riverdale, New York both chanced upon a pile of toys. The younger kid picked up two trains. But rather than pick up any of the remaining toys, the older kid reached over to grab the toy trains in the younger one’s hands. The two-year-old grabbed them back, knocking the older one off balance, and both kids start to cry.

Sounds familiar?

If the scene reminds you of your little one, then you aren’t alone. It can be a challenge for younger children to learn to share what they want or what they have with others. Ask a summer camp in Briarwood, New York and they will most likely advise that children this age are just too focused on their own thoughts and feelings; hence, the inability to share with grace.

A preschool in Manhattan, New York can help you in this regard. Once your children start having playdates and attending preschool, they will need to learn how to share with others. Sharing teaches them about fairness and compromise. They also learn to negotiate, to take turns, and to cope with disappointment―all of which are important life skills to have.

We at Renanim Preschool And Summer Camp have devised some ways to help your little ones learn about and practice sharing:

• Point out when other kids their age share well with others.
• Make sure to praise or reward your children when they do share.
• Play games that involve sharing and taking turns with your young ones.
• Talk with your children about sharing before they go on playdates with other kids.