My son is a very happy three-year-old who loves to play with every kid he meets.
He is so friendly and outgoing. If I am being honest, he rarely finds himself in situations where other children are being aggressive towards him. Or vice versa. It helps that my oldest is usually with him, and she is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to kids being bullies. She has spoken up for many children, including her brother, who were being mistreated.
With that being said, things do come up and children do not always get along.
At a soccer practice last fall, my son and a few other children were playing when one of them decided to harass and go out of her way to physically attack my son. I was upset at how the parents handled everything. They did not speak to their daughter and allowed her to continue to misbehave and approach my son aggressively. I began to vocalize my frustration by telling my son not to play with her. To play elsewhere. But he was emotionally hurt and visibly upset. I explained to him that not everyone was going to want to play with him and that was okay.
But something inside of me boiled.
Kindness and, more importantly, respect of others, should be common sense. I believe that, no matter what, these lessons should be taught and reinforced. Now, I would never speak to a child about their behavior, but I have no problem speaking with a parent about it. Because I truly and wholeheartedly feel as though these lessons are learned, not just in the home, but out in the real world. And the playground should be no exception.
It would be naïve of me to think that all children will be friends and could play well with one another. But have respect for your peers. As adults, it would be inappropriate to scream at someone you did not want to hang out with or push someone over for sitting in a seat you wanted. So why allow that attitude in children? Teach them young that we might not always agree, and that’s fine, but we can respect each other.
It starts somewhere.
I’m not here to judge or bash other parents, but to remind everyone that it does not take much energy to be kind – to ourselves or to others. I hope that little girl never has to experience someone being so blatantly rude to her. And I hope that we, as parents, can continue to show these kiddos what love and respect look like.
