Our child's emotions are an area of life that needs to be continually addressed as they grow and develop. Children need to be taught and have modeled for them healthy management of their emotions. They need to learn how to appropriately express and handle their emotions so that they can grow in emotional maturity and continue on to develop healthy relationships. Following are some guidelines to aid in your child's emotional development.

• Explore and talk with your child about their emotions (i.e. what they are feeling and thinking)
• Help your child to identify and understand their emotions
• Teach your child how to handle and respond to another person's statements of rejection
• Teach your child when to forgive another person's insensitivity
• Teach your child how to respect another's feelings while expressing his/her hurt and frustration
• Help your child to accept personal failures without unnecessary guilt
• Help your child to establish healthy boundaries while communicating acceptance and flexibility
• Help your child to find a balance between peer approval and needing to be secure within themselves
• Teach your child how to manage the insecure feelings that are a natural part of living life