5 Tips to Help Your Child Develop Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills are something that every adult needs in order to be able to successfully navigate the world. Having these skills helps you find and keep jobs and personal relationships. All great marriages come down to couples that know how to read and communicate with each other. Interpersonal skills don’t come naturally to everyone. They’re acquired over time with practice. You can start to learn and develop them at a young age in the right environment. If you’re hoping to foster your own child’s skillset there are a few things you can do. Here are five tips to help your child develop interpersonal skills.

Is your child struggling to make friends?

If your child is in elementary school and having a difficult time connecting with the other children, it might because their interpersonal skills aren’t as developed as their classmates. There’s no need to be alarmed; however, you should talk to a doctor about this. After your child is evaluated, it may be recommended that your son or daughter see a psychologist in Baltimore, or wherever you’re currently living.

If you’re in Baltimore, consider seeking help for your child at Baltimore Therapy Group. This group focuses on getting to the root of the problem, instead of just sticking a Band-Aid on a bigger issue. Their psychologists will help your child connect the dots when it comes to personal and social relationships. They’ll be able to find the root of what’s holding your child back from interacting easily with others and give him or her lasting strategies to help them cope. A therapist may even be able to practice different scenarios that will help your young one jump into the social pool, therefore teaching them to develop their interpersonal relationships.

Is your child struggling in a class?

Self-esteem can really hinder children’s abilities to have lasting, healthy interpersonal relationships. If they’re not feeling confident, because they’re struggling in school, they may not feel like they can interact with the other children. Your child may even be getting bullied for answering questions wrong in class or getting bad grades. If you can improve their grades, you may see their self-esteem skyrocket as well. Taking advantage of kids math tutoring could help your child feel brave enough to connect with others.

No one likes feeling wrong, and in math, more than other classes, there are right and wrong answers. HelloThinkster provides online math tutoring services that can help your child build on the knowledge they already have and improve in problem spots. Now, more than ever, it’s important to make sure your child is keeping on top of learning. Everything this school year is different due to COVID. Meeting a tutor in person just isn’t possible, and you can’t be a parent, housekeeper, cook, full-time employee, and tutor. Outsource some of that work, see your child’s grades improve, and by the time school is back in session in person, your child will be excited to share his or her knowledge with the class.

How often does your child see friends?

You can improve your child’s interpersonal skills by giving them an opportunity to hang out with other kids their age in an unstructured setting. You’re understandably busy, but if you’re not allowing your child to hang out with other kids their own age outside of structured time, like school, you may be doing him or her a disservice. Kids don’t really get to talk in classroom settings. Let them have playdates.

Does your child ever get the opportunity to resolve conflict?

When your child gets in a verbal altercation with someone else do you immediately step in and raise your voice? You want your child to have manners, but you also want them to learn how to communicate. If your child is having a verbal “fight” with a sibling or friend, try mediation. Teach them how to be constructive and communicate their feelings. You may find their manners improve with mediation.

When did you last talk about your child’s feelings?

Talking about feelings with your child can be vulnerable. You might feel like it’s your responsibility to “have it all together.” Talk about your own feelings. It may make your kid feel less alienated, and improve your own relationship.