Conflict resolution
Good social skills help children to interact effectively with others. It is important for children to develop good social skills so they are able to make friends, play appropriately with other children, solve social problems, and have positive self-esteem. Conflict resolution or problem-solving is an important social skill that often requires complex language.
Some strategies:
- Identify what the problem is – ask your child to tell you what has happened and what the problem is. You may need to ask questions and support them to understand the cause of the problem.
- Acknowledge and explain feelings – this is really important for children’s socio-emotional development as it allows them to develop an understanding of their own and others’ feelings. It is also important to talk about how other people might see the problem and react differently (e.g. “I can see you are feeling angry because your brother broke your toy”).
- Find a solution – Ask your child how they can solve the problem. If they are unable to think of an appropriate solution, you can support them by asking questions and giving them options (e.g. “What should you do now? Should you snatch from your brother or ask if you can take turns?”).
Speech Pathology Team