It can be tough when you are the youngest child in the family. As the youngest of five kids, I still forget that from time to time. Recently, I was reminded when Sean came into the room crying, “I’m not good at anything!” After asking some questions, I realized that he was feeling that way because Michael had just beat him in one of the Kinect Sports games. Sean went on to say, “I’m little. I can’t win.” Part of me was like, “Michael, why don’t you just let him win?!” but then again, that’s not life. People don’t just “let” you win because you want it. I want my kids to learn to enjoy the game – whether they win or lose. At the same time, I want Sean to know that he is great at many things. So, I started listing off the things that Sean was great at: He gives the best hugs and kisses. He is self reliant. He is strong (for a three year old).
Then Michael began to chime in regarding the things that his little brother were great at:” You’re fearless and you’re a really quick racer,” he added. We kept going and going mentioning Sean’s strengths (artistic, fun to be around, very focused…) We ended by saying that he was very loving. (Sean always tells us how much he loves and misses us when we are away from he. He really makes everyonoe in the family feel special.) By the end, Sean was beaming. “And I’m good at this,” he said as he did his little crazy legs dance. Suffice it to say, by the end of our little conversation, Sean was aware of many things that he was good at achieving.
To make things even sweeter, Sean beat Michael (fair and square) in another video game later in the week. “I win my brother! I win my brother!” Sean exclaimed. Yes, had had indeed beat his brother at something. Until the next episode…
Do the younger kids in your family express their feelings of not being as good at things as their older siblings. If so, how do you handle it?
