How to Teach Your Kid to Play With Other Kids for Maturity?

Very often, parents see the outbursts of aggression that kids might have at the playground while playing with other kids or alone. For an adult, it is difficult to understand why can’t kids play in peace or share toys.

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The answer is obvious – because a little one does not know how to negotiate with other kids. Also, your child’s social skills are underdeveloped at this point. Therefore, a child deals with this matter in the only way it knows – by crying, biting, and screaming. As a rule, parents interfere and try to shame and punish the guilty one.

Socialization is an important stage in a child’s development, and it escalates after the age of 3. Up to the age of 3, children do not want to share toys. They do not understand any type of oral persuasion you use.

For instance, “Would you let this boy play with your car?” Children under 2 are not particularly interested in group games, so do not even waste your time persuading them to play together.

Even if your child is past the age of 3, do not rush a little one. The kid can play on its own if it wants, and it is fine. One way or another, a little one will find friends and socialize in general.

What should you do?

If a child over the age of 2 is in a conflict situation – do not intervene immediately. Teaching your children to deal with conflict starts here. However, you need to be close in case a child needs your help as you are responsible for its safety! You can stop children if they pick a fight, but you should never yell at other kids. What you can do is talk to the child’s parents.

When a child is being a victim in the situation. If you see someone trying to take away your baby’s toy, protect your child’s interests.

Do not make your kid share toys with someone else if a little one does not want this. You can offer to exchange toys and explain their advantages. This way, you can teach a kid to negotiate.

If your child has offended another, do not run to punish a young offender. Instead, sympathize with the offended party. Believe me, a child hates to see his mommy being sweet with another kid. Therefore, this method is perfect.

Be a role model for a kid when it comes to resolving conflicts. For instance, bring a box of crayons to a playground and give each kid one and offer to play together. Another option could be to treat someone with a cookie and offer your child to do it, thereby letting a little one share with other kids. It will give a child an example of how to act, and a kid will follow it in the future, including when playing with toys.

Teach kids to play together. Literally, stay there with a child and help them to choose a game to play together.

You can also roleplay situations where a child needs to play together or to share something with its peers. It’s probably best to use toys for this.

Do not take new and favorite toys outside or to a kindergarten. Have a separate bag with toys that a child can share.

Children get aggressive because they do not know how to negotiate or deal with some situations. For this reason, parents should not get disappointed because of their child’s behavior.

The right way is to enhance the child’s social skills by teaching your child to deal with conflict and teaching children to play together. Therefore, work with your child on this. Mother and father can be an example for a kid and teach it a lot.

Do you like our ways to teach social skills to your child? Check out our other related articles.

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Liliana

Liliana is a Licensed Montessori teacher known for her passion and dedication to education. She's been a teacher in the United States for many years, and she truly believes that education is the key to making the world a better place because today's students are tomorrow's leaders. Her experience with Toddlers, Beginners, VPK with Montessori methodology approach; Kindergarten, and first grade made her an authority and trusted resource. Liliana's family taught her important qualities like love, a positive attitude, strong motivation, and leadership. These values have guided her on her journey to becoming a professional and expert teacher. Her mission is to help children grow and contribute to a brighter future for the country.