Problem Solving Skills in Children

A common social behavior problem for children is that they tend to resolve conflict through violence and aggression. This is because these children have underdeveloped problem solving skills. Problem solving is a vital skill for children to learn early; it covers basic social functions such as proper communication, negotiation and cooperation, which are all necessary to solve problems rationally. Children need to learn how to actively think of possible solutions and master them enough to use them spontaneously in real life situations.

  1. Required Skills

    • There are sub skills that a child needs to learn to develop his overall problem solving ability. Common sub skills include thinking of alternative solutions to a problem, choosing the best solution to a problem, and developing a comprehensive understanding of all the social implications of the solution. A child with developed problem solving skills has complete awareness of himself and the people around him and has a natural predisposition towards not causing harm with his actions.

    Warning Signs

    • Children with underdeveloped problem solving skills are typically very aggressive and violent; they act on their instincts when they want something or when they are feeling strong negative emotions. For example, a child will often fight with other children over an argument about toys; he will simply try to snatch the toy away from the other child or resort to physical violence. The tendency to go with instinct, if left unchecked, will grow as the child approaches the teen years, causing further disciplinary problems.

    Parental Intervention

    • Parents are often first on hand to intervene when a child shows signs of aggression towards people around her. Parents are advised to take a non-confrontational stance when trying to teach children problem solving skills. Instead, they can encourage the child to think of potential alternatives and the persistence to find the right solution. For example, a parent can ask the child, on the spot, to think of alternative solutions to a problem at hand. If a child still offers a violent alternative, parents should encourage more alternatives by calmly asking the child questions about how that solution may not work.

    School Intervention

    • Early school intervention acts as a complement to efforts initially done by parents. Most kindergartens and preschools work closely with parents to develop a child checklist: a list of behavioral problems and solutions that have worked with the child. The checklist would be used by teachers to reaffirm behavioral learning. Moreover, problem solving skills can be further developed by introducing narratives to the class; stories can be excellent case studies for a child to apply his problem solving skills towards talking about the characters and their respective conflicts.

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