The more children that you have in your family the more sibling rivalry will rear it’s ugly head. Sibling rivalry is normal, but undesirable.
What is sibling rivalry, really? It’s when siblings fight, argue or bicker about anything and everything. Why does it happen? Well, there are many reasons why.
Firstly, siblings share parents. This can create a competition of sorts over who gets more attention from mom and dad. Also, siblings generally live in the same home. They share the same space, and many times even the same bedroom. Siblings are not like friends. Kids can’t leave them at school. They are always there, where they are.
When you take just those factors into consideration you can see why siblings may get on each others nerves. Thankfully, there are several things that parents can do to help beat sibling rivalry. Siblings can get along. Here’s what to do.
1. The first tip that will help to put an end to sibling rivalry in your home is to teach conflict resolution. Children need to learn conflict resolution skills anyway, so why not start at home? When you catch your children arguing set them down and talk to them about resolving the problem. Fighting will never solve any problem. Talking things through and coming up with fair options will. Children can learn to compromise, and will when taught.
2. The second tip that will help to end sibling rivalry is to make sure to equally compliment and nurture all of your children. The child in the home who has the best behavior often get’s the most praise. This can make the other children feel left out. Regardless, offer your praise and love to all of the children as equally as you possibly can. This make each child feel loved and special and reduces hard feelings between siblings.
3. The third tip that will help to reduce sibling rivalry is to offer activities that the children can do together. When kids do enjoyable things together the bond more and fight less. Board games are great for this. Supplying are bin full of art supplies and plenty of fresh colorful paper will also give them something fun to do together. Kids often argue because they can’t find anything else to do. When they are supplied with something entertaining to do they will argue less and get along more.
4. The fourth tip that will help your children to get along better is to personalize their space. Even when your children share a bedroom they can still have their own personal space for sleeping, storing toys, clothes, and such. Let your children decide how to keep their side of the room. Use a stencil to paint their name above their bed. You could even choose to paint the room two different colors, one color chosen by each child who calls the room their own. There are four walls to every room! Little things like this will help your child to feel that they have their own personal space.
5. The fifth tip that will help you to end sibling rivalry is to emphasize the importance of family. Blood is thicker than water. The members of a family love each other no matter what. Kids need to be taught the importance of family at an early age. When we teach our children the importance of family they will argue less and get along more. Thanks for reading and take care!
