Day 85: Let's Share

Sometimes there are things that are so ingrained in me I don't even notice them. And a competitive view of the world is definitely one of these things. Lately I've been noticing that it's really colored the way I help Jackson approach ownership and sharing with his friends.

For all the effort I put into helping him find his voice and assert himself, I forgot to balance it with a hefty helping of encouragement toward cooperative play. So now when he's approached by another child who wants something he has, his first reaction is to stand his ground. And now as his playmates are coming out of the parallel play stage and getting ready for cooperative play, the gap is becoming obvious.

So I'm commencing project Play Together. Instead of helping him hold on to things and assert that he's going to finish before offering a turn to a friend, I'm going to focus on helping him find ways to play with the child who's wanting to take the toy for himself. We both need to recognize that we don't have to choose between "me" or "you" and start appreciating all the great things that come from "us."

I think the base of confidence he has to work with will make this a fairly smooth transition, and I'm excited to see all the ways he comes up with to talk about and practice cooperative play.