Mama Doc Medicine by Wendy Sue Swanson

Author:Wendy Sue Swanson [Swanson, Wendy Sue]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781581108323
Publisher: American Academy of Pediatrics

50

Inspiring Generosity in Our Children

Our 5-year-old kept forgetting to draw arms on his people at school. The lack of arms had evolved since school started in September and even came up in his fall parent-teacher conference. I found it odd—he always seems to remember that humans have arms when he draws at home. We didn’t mention it to him. And when his brother got an easel for his birthday recently, Finn painted this picture. Something jumped out at me. I loved it. Not just that he remembered to put arms on this figure but the perspective it imparts. Something about this little person looks so generous and so ready to give.

It’s important to help our children understand the need to give back, provide, share, and act generously. When I’ve thought of it before, I’d attributed our role (as parents) as role models; that is, I thought that if we act generously in front of children, they will learn how to give more freely.

A beautiful 2012 study in Public Library of Science (PLOS) ONE conducted at Yale University illuminated the complexity and maturity of our young children when it comes to giving. It made me realize that we may have to be more deliberate and outspoken about how and why we give. Social conditions matter when it comes to generosity and this isn’t just true of adults. “Human adults are unique in that they perform what appears to be an inordinate amount of generous behavior,” the study begins. Voluntary sharing really does begin as early as 2 years of age, even when “resources are easily monopolizable.”

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