Yesterday we needed to head out of our house for a few hours, while they were working in our house. I hesitated about taking Logan (age 3) to McDonald's play land - memories of our last visit danced through my head. ;-) Logan is the opposite of my other children with his very "direct" and matter of fact style when stating things. During our last visit a little girl told her grandparents "that little boy is being mean.". I tried to get Logan to apologize or we'd leave and by gosh - he chose to leave. He said he didn't want to play with her and she wants to and he just doesn't want to. I tried to explain the whole - it isn't "our" play land but everyone's play land and he can't be mean about someone else using it. But Logan stood his ground and wouldn't apologize to the little girl - so I stood firm and followed through with my statement and we left. Becca and Max always seem to get along socially with others. Becca being the social butterfly and Max just being so agreeable to everything (which scares me too).

I have to admit - my fears were just that - he did well today. He had asked if "the girls" were coming - my friend and her three girls and they surprised us and showed up! He was in heaven chasing them all. It is nice to see him get along - but - I do worry with his "tough" shell that he won't make many friends - I've often wondered if my children were "hard" wired with empathy or if this is something we can work on. So many people tell us that we MUST show love and politeness in our home after they meet Max - I wonder what they'll say when they meet Logan. ;-)

Today - I found some time to read my winter edition to FRUA's The Family Focus magazine. Imagine my surprise when an article in this issue had just some food for thought about this very issue that I'm concerned about.....

Social Skills for Kids by Cathi, Cohen, LCSW! :)

Below are some helpful hints from the article to develop empathy in a child:

pay attention to social matters in your child's life

prompt your child to think about the feelings and reactions of others

help them develop a detailed vocabulary of feelings

help them tune into body language and facial expressions

help your child notice verbal cues

encourage a sense of humor

teach your child to respond empathetically to others

encourage your child to be flexible to accommodate other's feelings