Thoughts for the Week:

Children often worry when toys or stuffed animals get broken that the same things could happen to them - that their arms or legs might fall off or that their insides could come out. They may worry about small cuts and scrapes. One way we can help them overcome these fears is to let them know that people and toys are different - our bodies can grow and heal. Another way is to let children know that caring adults will keep them safe.

Sometimes children worry about things that get broken because they broke it. When we let them help fix the broken toy, children learn that we can sometimes make things right again when we've made a mistake. Even if we can't fix everything that gets broken, there are other things we can do - like saying we're sorry to the person whose feelings are hurt. Young children learn to care about the feelings of others when caring adults take the time to talk with them about their feelings and about how other people might feel.