Helping Kids Develop Empathy

In helping kids develop empathy and cultural humility, it’s important for them to step into the lives of others in order to lower the biases and limitations of different cultures, says the article “4 Tools to Help Kids Develop Empathy and Cultural Humility.”

The article also details several multimedia resources that teachers can use in the classroom to assist kids in becoming more altruistic. One of them, for instance, is called the “The Global Oneness Project,” a dynamic multimedia resource that explores life experiences around the world through videos, photo essays, and articles.

Another article called “How Parents Can Cultivate Empathy in Children” says that empathy can be defined as having compassion for people and their perspectives. For kids to have these qualities, it’s imperative that parents show that caring about others is a priority and just as important as their own happiness.

By showing empathy in the classroom, teachers serve as excellent role models for kids, says the article “4 Proven Strategies for Teaching Empathy.” It’s basically the teacher who sets the example in caring for the feelings of others in the classroom. As teachers model empathy, students then have a tendency to mirror the same.

Literature can also be used in the classroom to help children see a situation from a different perspective. For instance, everyone knows the story “The Three Little Pigs,” and because the wolf is seen as a ravenous villain, most people sympathize with the pigs, says the article. To switch things up and engender empathy, teachers may want to have the students look at the story from the wolf’s point of view, says the article. Now that’s an interesting new spin!

Having English as a Second Language (ESL) students in the classroom, the majority of language students have the automatic opportunity of practicing empathy and understanding, and teachers have the opportunity to be a positive role model here, too.

There are also lots of terrific bilingual books on the market that show empathy towards minority children that can be incorporated into the classroom or in family outreach programs. Lectura Books, for instance, has interesting, culturally relevant books that kids and their parents connect with and are utilized byThe Latino Family Literacy Project in its highly successful, parent involvement programs.

Through a half day professional development training program or online webinar, The Latino Family Literacy Project trains teachers on guiding parents in establishing an at-home, reading routine using bilingual books incorporating themes that ESL kids often face. A regular family reading time can help greatly in improving vocabulary, reading skills, and overall language development in both English and Spanish for not only the child but parents, too. For more information, please contact Lectura Books or The Latino Family Literacy Project.