GOAL SLOGAN: OTHER PEOPLE HAVE FEELINGS TOO
SOME THINGS TO THINK ABOUT
The questions below are designed to help you think about how you can help from home with the skills development programme your child is taking part in.
- How can I recognise my feelings and those of others? Do I try to express my feelings in words?
- Love is understanding, but in order to understand, one needs to listen: How do I listen to others? What things prevent me from properly understanding what another person is telling me? Could it be that instead of listening, I am wondering what to answer, how to give advice and what to ask?
- What do I look at in order to see the moods and feelings of others; do I look at their faces, with their gestures and expressions? How do I express this feeling so that the other person feels understood?
HOW CAN WE HELP?
The suggestions below show when personal parental involvement is necessary. The aim of the subjects proposed is to demonstrate where you might be able to support your child and help him to work on developing this month’s skill.
- It might be a good idea to have a quick ‘reminder phrase’ for certain small polite details – like saying thanks and please, etc. Like: “What’s the magic word? / What do we say?”
- Before admonishing your child for something he has done wrong, first express your feelings: “I really do not like this situation”, “I am very disappointed.”
- In a moment of crisis, when your child is angry or emotionally stuck in a rut, using rational arguments or giving educational explanations is not a good idea. If someone is drowning it’s not the best time for swimming lessons, i.e. the best thing to do is to calm down and wait for the right moment to talk about things later on.
