Some children develop people skills naturally and others need help learning the skills and understanding when and how to use them. Whether experts talk about people skills, social skills or emotional intelligence, what it important is that children need skills that help them develop confidence, have good relationships with their peers and engage the world in a way that helps them meet their needs. Kids who master the social skills are happier, healthier and better able to cope with different situations.
Manners
As children move into the world more, their manners become important to others. Your child will make a better impression and be more comfortable if he knows how to practice good manners. Teach him table manners, how to greet people and how to wait to speak until others are done. This people skills will go over well with adults.
Kindness
Kindness is an important people skill. Teach your child to be kind to others by complimenting, sharing and helping out. Teach him the kind words and when to say them: please, thank you, I'm sorry and excuse me. Make sure he knows that hitting and other harmful behaviors are not appropriate. Help him discover that he can affect people with his moods and behaviors, such as saying a cheerful hello.
Respect
Respect is a people skill that covers a lot of territory. Your child needs to understand how to respect others' personal space and how to respect their possessions. Teach her to ask permission to use another person's things. Teach her that it is not good to make fun of others. Help her to understand all of the special rules about adults, like not interrupting.
Anger Control
Children need to know that anger can make things worse and that they can learn to control their angry feelings. Help your child understand that anger is okay, but it is not always appropriate to express anger. A good people skill is learning to control and calm himself, and find acceptable ways to express anger.
Cooperation And Compromise
Kids play together, share toys and engage in activities where they have to take turns. Cooperation and compromise are people skills that help your child get along with others. Help him learn how to follow rules and directions, stick to schedules and routines and take turns. Help him learn to negotiate with others, when it is best to give in and that cooperating means listening to other people's ideas.
Recognize Others' Feelings
Often children need help recognizing emotional clues, especially in new situations or with strangers. You can help him develop this social skill by teaching him to pay attention to people's facial expressions and body language to know if a person is sad, happy, angry, afraid or frustrated. If a person seems angry, let him know it is OK to choose not to play with that person.
Active Listening
Active listening is a social skill, but it is also a good communication skill for kids to learn. Teach your child to listen to others so he will know what is happening, what to do next and to make he has all of the information he needs. Teach him to stop what he is doing and to be quiet while the other person is talking. Encourage him to ask questions if he is unsure of what was said.
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