At the United Nations they decided to appoint the August 31 as the International Day of Solidarity, so that nations and individuals remember through cooperation and solidarity the imbalances are undone. We can define solidarity as the awareness of the needs of others, and the desire to contribute and collaborate for their satisfaction.
La solidarity is taught and learned, and it is important that we educate our sons and daughters in this value. We provide you with some activities and resources that serve as a tool to teach children about solidarity.
Tips for instilling solidarity in children
It's important to know how we can instill in our children the concept of solidarity. We can teach them, for example, the benefits of sharing. Perhaps at this time of a pandemic, children are receiving a contradictory message, because on the one hand we tell them that it is good for other children to enjoy their toys, for example, and on the other we warn them of the risk that they do so. Either way, sharing creates happiness.
We as mothers, and the rest of the family will be the example. Motivating children to collaborate in daily household tasks will make them more collaborative and responsible. They will learn that collaboration and helping others is important and rewarding for everyone involved. Cooperation and collaboration promote solidarity.
You can carry out solidarity activities in your environment, and have your children participate in them. For example go to social works, reduce water consumption, do not waste food. All these issues can also be approached from solidarity, and awareness.
Three games that teach solidarity
And going to practice, we show you three games that teach solidarity In the kids. All of them can be found and downloaded on the Internet. It is about children knowing other games from other parts of the world, you can download this guide from the Department of Education and Research of the Community of Madrid. One of the proposals is Mbube, from South Africa, which means lion. The boys and girls stand in a circle and have two of them in the center, both blindfolded. One acts as an antelope and the other as a lion. The circle decides what it wants to do: help the lion, to have lunch, or the antelope to flee. The children will yell leading one or the other.
In general the team sports or cooperative games, such as La treasure huntThey also encourage teamwork, help and collaboration for the common good. These promote that the result of the team is more important than the personnel. There are board games that, through pictures and social situations, teach children models of solidarity and ways of acting that reward helping others.
Adventures in the desert It has been created by Intermón Oxfam for adolescents. It is proposed to reflect on responsible consumption. Teenagers have to choose what things they need to survive in the desert and what they don't. The key is to share with the group, to find out what each one has in their backpack. Between all they have to choose a maximum of ten.
Resources to teach solidarity to children
If you want to teach your children solidarity you can do it through poetry and stories, and videos. We recommend these titles, but surely you will find more:
The boy and the beggar, a poem that teaches the value of understanding and charity.
The two kittens that teaches children the value of tolerance.
The little frog and the moon. Children's story about kindness and solidarity:
The dwarf Edmund, poem about values such as solidarity, love or friendship.
The little ones have a collection of six booklets: For asking that it does not remain. They are games and didactic activities based on current issues such as immigration, children's rights, gender equality, consumption, disability, food.
We suggest that at home you do a solidarity collage, in which the child is pasting images about the culture, work, customs and way of life of people in different countries. You can do this collaborative collage by inviting those friends to your home and have them post photos of their relatives, or of the typical dishes of their country.
