Emotions are proper states in people caused by different thoughts or behaviors that they have. Emotions are really important in children since depending on them, they will influence their behavior or thinking in a positive or negative way.
Parents must teach at all times what these emotions consist of and explain each one of them, since a good development at a mental level can depend to a great extent on it.
The importance of explaining emotions to children
Experts agree in stressing the importance of teaching children what emotions consist of. Happiness at home largely depends on this fact. Then we explain the importance for the child of knowing about the different emotions:
- it helps so much to mental and social development of the little one.
- Reduces the risk of consuming addictive substances in the future such as tobacco or alcohol.
- Helps reduce possible aggressive or angry behaviors.
- It allows the child to know himself.
- Children should not hold back when expressing their emotions although they should be able to control them at all times.
basic emotions
There are a series of basic emotions that all children should know:
- Anger is the rage that a child can have when they do not get something they want or want very much. It is an emotion that the child must know how to control since in the long run it can cause serious behavior problems.
- Fear is another of the basic emotions that a child should know. Fear is not bad as long as you know how to control yourself, otherwise it can be a serious problem for the child.
- Disgust is an emotion that consists of disliking another person or a particular thing. Children often show disgust towards certain foods such as vegetables.
- Sadness is an emotion that is linked to pain and crying. There are many things that can cause sadness in the little ones, such as losing their pet favorite.
- Joy is another of the basic emotions and It consists of a pleasant feeling caused by a favorable event.
- Surprise is a feeling of wonder at something new. It is an emotion that can motivate you when looking for answers to many questions.
How to explain emotions to children
There are a number of methods that can help you explain different emotions to your child:
- Through various games you can instill in your child the importance that knowing different emotions can have in their development. To do this, you can take a story and ask him to describe the different emotions he observes in one of the characters in that book.
- Music is a quite effective method when it comes to the child correctly learning the different emotions that exist. You can listen together with your child different styles of music and ask him later what kind of emotions he has caused them.
- If you notice that your child has a hard time expressing emotions, a good idea may be to give him a diary in which he can record the emotions he has. This will help you over time to be able to express such emotions.
Ultimately, It is quite important that parents know how to explain different emotions to their children from a young age. Thanks to this, you will be able to educate your child much better since you will get to know him better. In addition to this, the child will feel better and will be happier in his personal life. Emotional intelligence is a key piece in the education of any child and parents must give it the importance it really has at all times. The problem today is that many children are unaware of such emotions and their emotional intelligence is almost non-existent.