Sharing

Fostering Sharing Behaviors

More sharing takes place in classrooms where there is a feeling of security, a model present who shares, an abundance of materials and equipment, and where sharing is taught.

Security

If children feel secure, and if they have enough for themselves, they are better able to share with others. Thus, you need to establish a classroom atmosphere of security. Insecure children are not ready to accept the social techniques of sharing. With young children, small groups with high teacher or adult ratios seem to foster children’s ability to share. Small groups allow the following:

• More teacher-child interaction. Teachers who have too many children to interact with are frustrated and short-tempered and do not have time to give children the personal attention that says, “You’re valued and respected” and “I care for you.”
• Increased recognition. Children can share their ideas and thoughts more readily; they have more opportunities to take lunch money to the cafeteria, carry the flag, have their story read, play the game the way they want to, or lead the entire group in a song.
• Feelings of social adequacy. Young children just learning to relate to others can find handling relationships with many other children a monumental task. But with only a few others, children feel more adequate and competent in their ability to relate.
• Consideration of the group context. A shy, withdrawn child may feel more secure and able to reach out to others when in a quiet group of children rather than an assertive, aggressive group. Likewise, highly aggressive children may find more security and social acceptance when in a more boisterous group (Stormshak et al., 1999).

Models

Children who observe models sharing appear to be better able to share, and the teacher is the best model. When the teacher is noticeably spontaneous, warm, and responsive, the children show many more sympathetic responses than they do in a group in which the teacher tends to be hard-boiled and unsympathetic to children in distress. Teachers who deliberately try to develop warm friendships with children and who respond freely and openly to children’s needs have children who participate more freely in group activities. These children also have higher leadership scores and show more evidence of sharing than do children of teachers who make little or no effort to work closely with individuals or who participate as little as possible in the activities of the group. Conversely, when teachers react negatively to children’s antisocial behaviors or enter into conflict with them, children appear to be more aggressive as well as more withdrawn (Birch & Ladd, 1998).

Physical Environment

Children confined in small play spaces with limited equipment and toys are more frequently observed fighting than are those in larger play spaces with an adequate number of materials. With plenty of space and equipment, sharing becomes easier.

You can arrange an environment conducive to sharing even if space is not available. Placing the equipment so that it is readily accessible to children, selecting some things to place on tables, and providing other materials on open shelves invite children to use and share the available materials rather than focus on a single piece of equipment or have to hunt for toys.

Direct Teaching

Teachers teach, and among the things they teach children are the social skills involved in sharing. You can use direct teaching in connection with children’s play and social interactions. Children can be taught skills by directed doll play, by practice in solving conflicts over toys, or through direct statements made as they are playing: “We do it this way in school,” or “Take two more turns, and then it’s Aletha’s turn.”

Explicit coaching may be helpful, particularly when teaching children to include others with special needs. Successful coaching techniques include the following:

• Clarify the concepts and behaviors that need to be addressed, such as the idea that hitting will not solve the problem.
• Discuss the idea and the behavior with children, and ask them to think about alternative ways for relating with others.
• Practice social skills through role play with others.
• Coach children in the use of concepts and behaviors in real situations (Gillies, 2000).
• Eliminate competitive activities or games. Children exhibit more cooperative behavior when engaging in noncompetitive games or activities (Finlinson, Austin, & Pfister, 2000).

Books are useful when teaching children prosocial behaviors. For example, after reading Aliki’s (1987) We Are Best Friends, in which a boy makes new friends, the teacher can engage children in discussions of how they could make new friends. One second-grade teacher asked each child to write a personal letter to a friend.

Miriam Cohen’s (1998) It’s George—the story of a boy who is not appreciated by other first graders until he becomes a hero—illustrates a number of ways to make friends.