How To Teach Children Problem Solving Skills
Problem solving is a fundamental life skill that children should start learning as soon as possible. At the end of the day, children will soon start to deal with various kinds of problems, and if we don’t teach them to solve them effectively themselves, they will end up learning other ways of doing things.
How to deal with a problem, how to deal with frustration or how to deal with people with whom we come into conflict are some of the issues that are associated with problem solving. If we teach children to face these conflictive situations, we will be preventing them from picking up habits that are very difficult to eradicate later in all these areas.
On the other hand, learning to solve problems and conflicts is also a way of training children in decision-making. Teaching children to make healthy choices is another important task that parents must do with our children. When children learn problem-solving skills, they also learn that they can trust their ability to make good decisions for themselves.
Detect and evaluate problems
The biggest problem many children who lack problem-solving skills face is that they don’t recognize when they have a problem or that they are unable to assess what options they have to solve it. These children can react impulsively, without thinking. The first step is to help children learn how identifying their options can help ensure that they are making healthy choices.
Therefore, the main thing is to start by teaching children how to identify the problem. Sometimes, simply by identifying the problem, it is possible to go a long way in solving it. Once children identify the problem, teach them to develop several possible solutions before doing anything else. In addition to identifying them, the child has to be able to see their pros and cons and assess them to find the one that suits him best and why.
Once a child recognizes several options and the possible consequences of each, he must decide which option is the best. At this point, it is vitally important to teach children that if they choose one option and the problem is not solved, something else can always be tried to encourage them to keep trying to solve a problem until it is solved.
Talk about problem solving with the child
When problems arise for children, do not run to try to solve them. If a child has a problem, they must be given the opportunity to identify it and solve it himself before helping, even if the child is under some stress. It is an excellent learning opportunity, as well as an ideal time to teach him new skills. Of course, if there is a security problem, you have to intervene immediately.
In addition, when we decide that we must help, what parents must do is guide him, help him think, offer him a problem-solving model and discuss with him the different options and how to act, step by step.
Not letting the child suffer or wanting to make things easier for him by interfering in his life is not a way to help children, but to make them dependent and to create problems of self-esteem and security in themselves. Talking to them means helping them open their minds, not dictating what to do.
Allow for natural consequences
When children are allowed to experience the natural consequences of their decisions, learning problem-solving skills is more effective. Although it is important to ensure that there are no safety concerns, children should feel what is happening, even if it is a negative consequence.
Not letting children experience the natural consequences of their decisions will not stimulate them to think about how to act and will give them false confidence in their ability to decide. Only by experiencing what happens can they really find alternative options or explore other avenues that satisfy them more.
In addition, these natural consequences are a learning opportunity that allows us parents to help work with our children to solve problems and that can be remembered in later decisions.
