Chapter 5

<p>Children of this age are naturally curious about others and attentive to them, but they sometimes lack the skills to know how to attend to others, ask questions, or explore their similarities and differences with others in meaningful ways. This chapter focuses therefore on three key areas, each covered in a single learning experience: understanding others’ emotions in context; mindful listening; and exploring ways in which human beings are the same and different. The continuous theme of these learning experiences is empathy: the ability to understand and resonate with another’s situation and emotional state. Empathy, and its attendant skill of mindful listening, in turn lays the groundwork for the following chapter on self-compassion and compassion for others. </p><p>At this age, children can on occasion assume that others should always think and feel the same as they do, or if they do not, they may feel that someone else’s differences are such that they are completely different, with little in common. The point of this chapter is to explore the middle ground between these two extremes, appreciating both commonalities and differences for what they are, and seeing that neither negates the other. On such a middle ground that seeks to efface neither commonalities or differences, a respectful and genuine compassion for others can emerge.</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Hyq3YdPEsgusKgm_8RxcShTl9ggQeYtw/view?… full chapter</strong></a></p>