What:
Empathy is a crucial skill to build in your classroom but before you can build empathy in your classroom you must first build empathy in yourself. “Empathy is a concerned response to another person’s feelings. It involves thinking, feeling, and even a physical reaction that our bodies have to other people when we relate to how they feel. To have empathy, we have to notice and understand others’ feelings, but that isn’t enough. We also need to care about and value them” (source). There are several ways we can build empathy in ourselves. I’ve listed a few of them below.
Broaden Your Circle:
Broadening your circle of friends and influence is crucial to building empathy in yourself. Try one of all of the following suggestions to broaden your circle.
- “Start conversations with strangers or invite a colleague or neighbor you don’t know well to lunch. Go beyond small talk – ask them how they’re doing and what their daily life is like.
- Follow people on social media with different backgrounds than you have (different race, religion or political persuasion).
- Put away your phone and other screens when you’re having conversations, even with the people you see every day, so you can fully listen and notice their facial expressions and gestures” (source).
Walk in Someone Else’s Shoes:
The next step in building empathy is to physically walk in someone’s shoes by “Attend someone else’s church, mosque, synagogue or other houses of worship for a few weeks while they attend yours, or visit a village in a developing country and volunteer. Spend time in a new neighborhood, or strike up a conversation with a homeless person in your community” (source).
Volunteer:
The final suggestion is to volunteer. “Working on a project with other people reinforces everyone’s individual expertise and humanity, and minimizes the differences that can divide people” (source).
Next Steps
Interested in learning more? Check out the websites below for great information.
References:
All sourced information is hyperlinked as applicable above.
TLDR (too long didn’t read):
Empathy is a crucial skill to build in your classroom but before you can build empathy in your classroom you must first build empathy in yourself. “Empathy is a concerned response to another person’s feelings. It involves thinking, feeling, and even a physical reaction that our bodies have to other people when we relate to how they feel. To have empathy, we have to notice and understand others’ feelings, but that isn’t enough. We also need to care about and value them” (source). There are several ways we can build empathy in ourselves. I’ve listed a few of them below.
@hollandkaylah