Cleaning Up Their Own Emotional Mess (e.g., After Yelling): Building Emotional Responsibility in Children
Last Friday, my 9-year-old had an explosive tantrum after losing a board game. She screamed, threw pieces across the room, and shouted at her younger sibling. After the storm passed, she sat on the couch looking embarrassed and overwhelmed by the aftermath. Instead of immediately stepping in to clean up and fix everything, I said, “I see you’re feeling bad about what happened. What do you think you need to do to make this right?” The look of uncertainty mixed with determination on her face told me we had a perfect opportunity to practice emotional cleanup in a low-stakes environment. ...