Blog
Developing Empathy in Children
Empathy is a function of the upstairs brain, and a skill that needs to be developed. According to Siegel and Payne Bryson, a wonderful way to cultivate empathy is to “ask simple questions that encourage the consideration of another’s feelings…” Simply draw the child’s attention to the feelings of others.
Fostering Self-Understanding in Children
Self-understanding uses higher level parts of the brain to interpret emotions and sensations that come from the lower parts of the brain. According to Siegel and Payne Bryson one of the best ways to foster self-understanding in children is to “ask questions that help them look beyond the surface of what they understand…”
Bibliotherapy: The Whole-Brain Child
I had the privilege of seeing Dr. Dan Siegel speak in California years back, he is one of the leaders in the field of psychiatry. The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind by Daniel J. Siegel, MD and Tina Payne Bryson, PhD has been on my bookshelf unread for years. The whole time, I was reading it, I kept thinking, I should have read this earlier! Everyone that interacts with kids must read this book!
2-for-1 Mental Well-Being!
It’s common that I have clients show up for therapy with stress related concerns. Often these folks feel overwhelmed with all their daily responsibilities, and they come to therapy for “tools, coping skills, or strategies” so that they can manage the same number of things, but better!
One strategy that I have found myself speaking on lately is how can we meet multiple needs with one activity?