Nobody can deny the importance of social intelligence and its effects on one’s personality and prospects. More often than not, we don’t feel comfortable around people who lack basic social skills. Even when they are smart, intelligent, and highly achieved individuals. We know for sure that children with better social skills have more advantage to survive and thrive in life.
How do toddlers develop social skills ?
It has been believed that social intelligence is largely innate and determined from birth. However, psychologists now think that social skills can, and should, be taught. Parents’ upbringing can play a great role in shaping a child’s social skills development. They can improve them by training their children on basic social skills that will be part of their personality. This can start as soon as the child is two years of age. As he or she begins to have a consciousness of their own.
- Initially, children need to learn how to introduce themselves properly. Although it might seem to be a brainless task for us adults, it is one of the most important social skills for your child. In order to feel capable of communicating with others as other grownups do.
- In the beginning, the child learns how to convey her or his name and age clearly. Then they start to add details they are proud of like mentioning having siblings or attending a certain nursery.
- Other social skills include communicating with adults like seeking their help and following instructions. It is important to help your child understand that it’s okay to ask for help when they need it. These skills are essential for raising children that respect others and don’t give in to despair when they face a problem.
- As a child turns three, some skills can get more challenging to tackle and might take a lot of time and effort for children to learn. A good example is teaching your child handling a “no”. Teach him that you are not expected to meet all his desires immediately. Don’t settle for the short “no”, but proceed to engage in an active discussion with your child about the reasons as a parent you refuse to do something. Tell them that most of your No’s are out of concern about their health and safety.
- Moreover, your child needs to learn that people come from different backgrounds and will have different interests. This will help them accept differences and tolerate opposite points of view.
- Coach your child some traits that will elevate the softer side of their personality.
- Teach them that making an apology is important to have a healthy relationship with the people they respect and love. You can train your child on this after his 18th month by asking him to say sorry to one of his parents when a mistake takes place.
- Encourage them to say ‘thank you’ and show gratitude when you offer them something. Also, teach them, by example, to say something nice to their father when he gets back home from work after explaining that he works hard to provide them with a good life.
These skills and others are taught to your child in cooperation with the nursery which basically serves as a real-life test of your child’s skills by communicating with teachers and other peers.
At Little Academy Nursery, we care about the regular, direct communication with the parents to help observe their child’s behaviors and redirect them when necessary. We also report to parents any positive or negative remarks that might contribute to the improvement of their children’s personalities.