Preschoolers are fun to watch as they learn and grow. They are constantly developing physically, mentally and socially. It is the social aspect that many parents struggle with, but keep reading for some advice on this.
We watch our children go from being the babbling blob of infant-hood to walking and talking machines. Physically, they continue to grow and develop at very fast rates. They are constantly stretching their minds too, and synthesizing what they are learning. However, many of us parents struggle with developing our kids socially.
We still are answering for them when at stores or restaurants. “Sally, tell the lady that you are four now.†When at the park we are never more than an earshot away. When things get tough, we rush to the rescue.
What we need to do is to start coaching them on how to respond to others. How to express their feelings and converse with others is something that most kindergarten teachers say is lacking in their students. There are a couple of ways to work on this.
First off, dinner table discussions. Most of the conversations at dinner become focused on what everyone is eating and how much more needs to be eaten to get dessert. Instead, we need to bring up a topic and discuss it as a family. “What would be some fun things to do this weekend?†“If you could have a super power, what would it be?†Anything that gets some creative juices flowing works well; however, just be sure that everyone is speaking in turn.
Another great way to work on conversation is to encourage them to ask friends at the park something about themselves. Afterwards, ask your daughter what they talked about. Ensure she was paying attention. Ask her questions to see how well she engaged the other kid.
Lastly, have him talk to the server at the restaurant or clerks at the store. They will feel safe talking to adults because you are there with them. Coach them if needed, but do not bail them out. When we do this, we are not helping them in the long run.
As parents today, we are awesome at working on our child’s physical development and even building their knowledge-bases. We are quite weak at helping them develop socially. We shield them more than our parents did for us because of the increased craziness in the world. We can’t lose sight of the fact they still have to learn social skills and how to have a conversation.