As parents, we recognize and celebrate our children’s hard work and accomplishments in school and activities on a daily basis.  

Rewarding your child for a job well done is normal, and helps to instill a strong work ethic in them early in life! 

However, sometimes we overlook the importance of teaching our children how to celebrate the success of others.  

Although it can be challenging, especially during the younger years, learning how to be truly happy for other people is an important life lesson to learn. This is necessary in school, at home and in your child’s after school activities, such as dance! 

Here are some tips to keep in mind when teaching your child how to celebrate another’s success.

1. GRATITUDE: Remind your child that we are all created differently with unique gifts and talents. It’s natural for a child to feel jealous when someone else is being celebrated or has accomplished something that they are also working toward. We all learn at different speeds, and that is okay! 

A great way to help your child practice gratitude is to walk them through some questions, asking them to identify three or four things in their own life where they are successful, and can be thankful. It will likely be easier for your child to be happy for someone else’s success when they realize all the great things they themselves have already achieved!

2. PRACTICE AT HOME: Celebrate successes of your child’s family, friends and peers. Celebrating the success of someone who your child loves and already has a strong relationship with, such as a sibling, classmate, or teammate, may help. They will be able to truly experience feelings of excitement for others when they already have an emotional connection to them.  

The next time a close family member or friend experiences success, walk your child through expressing to that person directly how happy they are for them!  

An example would be, “I am so happy you got 100% on your spelling test!  You worked hard for that. Good job!”

3. COMPLIMENT A CLASSMATE: Look for opportunities to shine the spotlight on someone else. As parents, it’s easy to find things to praise your child for. It’s also important to focus your attention on someone else, such as another dancer in your child’s class, to show your child that everything is not always about them. 

Encourage them to be observant during their next dance class, looking for something good another dancer is doing.  During or after class they can compliment their classmate on doing a skill really well, or take an opportunity to tell someone, “good job”!

Dance is a great opportunity, not only to develop skills and get exercise, but to grow as a person, and to bloom into a kind and thoughtful person!  

These are skills that children will take with them well into adulthood, their future relationships, and their careers!