What is Empathy?

Empathy is one person’s ability to understand and be sensitive to another’s feelings. It is important to explore and nurture this ability in young children as it forms the basis for developing settings where difference is celebrated and children approach each other with respect and concern, no matter what their differences.

Some children will develop the ability to feel empathy towards another child but may not be able to react in an appropriate manner to these feelings. For instance a young child may feel empathy for another who is crying because of pain but may not know what to do to help that child stop, and hence they react by doing whatever they can to stop the crying, possibly resulting in hitting or the throwing of objects.

Therefore it is not just important to develop children’s ability to empathise with others, but to create a setting where children are able to discuss and explore their reactions to these feelings in a non-confrontational and supportive atmosphere.

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