How Sibling Rivalry Helps Kids Prepare for Life | Families

If you have more than one child, you’ve experienced sibling rivalry. Parents tend to want any and all sibling disagreements to just stop now. The truth is sibling disagreements can be beneficial. Siblings need to know what the mom on the TV show Sisters told her daughters over and over again, “Who is there for you from cradle to grave — your sisters!” Parents need to know that the sibling relationship is also a trial run for adult relationships.

During childhood, siblings learn how mean words and actions impact others. They learn what it takes to give in, especially when they don’t want too. They learn what it feels like to be compassionate. And what it feels like when someone isn’t compassionate with them. They learn to do things for others because they love them, even when they don’t want to.

 Three Tips for Making Sibling Rivalry Beneficial

The best way to stop the sibling wars is to change the way you look at rivalry. If a parent can shift his or her thinking from believing that a parent is supposed to be in charge of breaking up fights, to realizing that the rivalry is an opportunity to teach skills for their future, there will be less frustration for everyone.

1.  Help the Kids Work it Out Themselves

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