5 Things to Do to Teach Kids to Share

Being a parent is a fun, difficult, important, crazy, all-consuming job. There are so many things we need to teach our children to make them productive members of society. And one of the most important things we can teach children when they are young is how to share. In school, work, and even personal relationships, it is important to know how to share. So, how do you teach your young child how to share?

Practice Sharing

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Practice makes perfect. We’ve all heard this saying many times. When teaching a child to share, it’s important to practice sharing. Whether showing your child how to share with a sibling, with yourself, or with friends, the more they are shown how to share, the more likely they are to do it themselves. Another good way to practice sharing is to simply play by taking turns. Build a tower together – your child puts down a block, then you put the next one. With this exercise you are helping your child learn valuable lessons – sharing, patience, and working together to achieve a goal.

Limit Punishments

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When teaching a child something new, it can be tempting to be stern with them when they aren’t complying. However, when teaching sharing, it is crucial to limit punishments and stern actions. Sharing is not something that can be forced. Many children will have trouble sharing their toys with others, and may even have certain items they refuse to share. This is normal, and the child will learn that sharing is more fun than playing alone. However, scolding and punishments in this area may lead to resentment and selfishness.

Get Excited

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You want your child to be excited about playing well with others, right? If so, you need to make sure you get excited, as well. Praise your child when they share. Tell them how great they are doing when they let another child, or even yourself, play with their toys. Even when your child only shows another person their toy, it is important to encourage this behavior. Children grow with praise. They are more likely to do the behavior, in this case – share, when they know they are doing something good.

Be Realistic

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Are you expecting your one year old to willingly share all of their toys? This could be unrealistic. In fact, most professionals agree that true sharing doesn’t start happening until about 2 ½. While it is important to start teaching your child to share before this, it is not a good idea to expect true sharing at a very young age. Realistic expectations on when your child should have good sharing skills can keep you sane and your child happy.

Practice What You Preach

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How often do you share? When teaching a child anything, especially a habit like sharing, you need to make sure you do it, as well. When playing with your child, give them the toy you have. As you do this, explain you are sharing the toy. Even things like sharing a cooking dish with a friend or lending the lawn mower to the neighbor are a great times to show your child how important it is to share.

Sharing. It is something that, as adults, we may not think about very often. However, as parents, it is something that is constantly on our minds. Teaching our children to share will help them grow. It is a long and sometimes very frustrating process. However, as with most things that have to do with parenting, it is worth it in the end.