Q+A
How do I teach my child empathy?
Our children hear it every day at school and at home: share, take turns, keep your hands to yourself. Yet it takes more than a list of rules to raise children who share God’s love in what they do and say.
Empathy is a difficult concept for a child just learning about emotions. Parents and other family members play an important role in nurturing emotional awareness.
Zero to Three, a nonprofit for nurturing early development, provides a few ways you can teach your children to recognize and name their or others’ feelings:
- Model empathy. Children look to us for guidance as their first teacher. Give them the words they need to express complex feelings.
- Read books or Bible stories and explore emotions. A simple technique to use in reading any story together is to ask your child how he thinks the characters are feeling. How was Jonah feeling? Scared. How did the sick man feel when he was healed? Happy.
- Be patient and validate difficult emotions. When your child throws a tantrum, for example, tell her you understand she is angry and you will wait to talk until she has calmed down.
Expressing empathy—understanding how others feel and responding appropriately—is an essential part of our calling as Christians. If we arm our children with empathy today, they will grow into caring adults.
“Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” Romans 12:15
Practices
Bedtime prayers are a wonderful opportunity to encourage your child to think of others. Ask your child who they would like to pray for and remind them to think about
who might need help as well as with whom they can celebrate.
Prayer
Dear God,
You created our beautiful hearts to feel! Thank you for joy, to smile when we are happy so others may share this smile. Thank you for sadness, to take comfort in the hug when it is needed. Thank you for anger, to feel safe to let out frustration. And thank you for love, your steadfast love, God and the ability to share it. May we celebrate all of these emotions in our family and in our world.
Amen
100 + birthdays
111: Katie Bodenbender, Trinity, Moline, Ill. 105: Kathryn Patterson, Salem English, Minneapolis. 104: Esther Johnson, Emanuel, Modesto, Calif. 103: Ruth Larson, First, St. Peter, Minn. 102: Dorothy Ingebritson, United, Bella Vista, Ark.; Ruth Peterson, Gethsemane, Wallace, Mich.; Edith Walter, Redeemer, Bryant, Ind. 101: Ella Berquist & Jane Kohlman, Resurrection, Granite Bay, Calif.; Katherine Fritsche & Helen Sharp, Peace, South Haven, Mich.; Myrtle Johnson, Salem English, Minneapolis. 100: Lottie Diehl, Advent of Goschenhoppen, Harleysville, Pa.; Thelma Kurilo, Resurrection, Portland, Ore.; Eleanor Kurtzweg, Edmonds, Edmonds, Wash.; Dorothy Louderback, University, East Lansing, Mich.; Christeen Loy, Redeemer, Bryant, Ind.; Irene Ovren, Big Elk Creek, Elk Mound, Wis.; Viola Palmer, St. James, York, Pa.; Ellen Saine, Bethlehem, Two Harbors, Minn.; Dorothy Stolba, St. Paul, Teaneck, N.J.; Dorothy Tornberg, Geneva, Geneva, Ill.; Marie Ulbrich, Bethel, St. Clair Shores, Mich.
