Children should learn when to speak up as they grow. By that, we mean they should know when to report serious issues. The best place to learn about this is usually in school, although parents can help them.
One great way to help children know when to speak up is to explain the difference between tattling and reporting. Children tend to confuse these two aspects as they grow, so it’s important to educate them about the difference.
Don’t worry if you have been trying to teach your children these two topics in vain. Keep reading to learn the best way to do it and its benefits.
1. Define and Explain Them Practically
The first important step is to define the two terms efficiently and comprehensively.
Tattling happens when a child tells about something that doesn’t hurt them. Usually, they talk about the issue to punish the other person. For instance, a child is said to tattle if they tell the teacher about a friend who took a cookie without their permission.
On the other hand, reporting is all about talking to a teacher, parent or caregiver about an issue that can have a substantial negative impact. For instance, a child telling a teacher about someone bullying them.
You should clearly define the differences between the two terms and even do this practicably when teaching. In addition to the standard definitions, you can divide the children into groups to explain these two aspects. Be sure to utilize tattling vs. reporting guidance lessons, allowing the teams to interact more and understand the concepts.
When the definitions are clear and you involve some practicals, the children will most likely understand the key difference between tattling and reporting.
2. Use Good Examples
Using examples helps children to learn better. Therefore, try to find real-life examples of the difference between tattling and reporting.
Here are helpful examples that you can use when teaching:
Tattling:
- Sammy took my book and pencil without my permission.
- Mary keeps talking to me, and I don’t want to talk to her.
- Paul doesn’t want to play with me.
- Greg pushed me out of the line.
- Carol didn’t clean the toys after using them.
As you can see from the examples, tattling is about seeking attention and manipulating or threatening. It doesn’t show that the other person is hurting the victim.
Reporting:
- Adam is beating Emma in the playground.
- The boys are bullying the new students.
- Samuel pushed me down the stairs.
- The lady wanted to hit me with their car.
These are serious issues that can cause danger or harm to someone. When teaching your children, be sure to give out as many examples as possible so that the kids can understand better.
3. Talk to Them About Intentions
One main differentiating factor in titling and reporting is intention.
The primary purpose of tattling is to damage another person’s reputation or make them look bad to the person you are telling. On the other hand, reporting aims to seek help because something terrible has happened or may happen.
So, you should teach kids about the intentions of tattling and reporting to help them see the differences clearly.
4. Empower Them
The last great way of teaching children about tattling and reporting is to empower them to solve issues.
Tattling deals with minor problems, and they can solve them independently. On the other hand, they shouldn’t keep quiet when something serious or risky is about to happen. Instead, they should report it as soon as they can.
Empower them with problem-solving skills so that they can know when to stay out of danger and when to be silent.
Why You Should Teach Kids the Difference Between Tattling and Reporting
Now that you know how to teach, you may wonder how important this topic is. Here are the main reasons to let kids know the difference between these two aspects.
1. Encourages Responsibility
Kids should be taught responsibility. One way of doing this is to teach them about tattling and reporting. With this knowledge, they can easily know when to report something serious so that they don’t get hurt.
2. Improves Communication
Another benefit of teaching kids about tattling and reporting is creating healthy communication.
By reporting minor issues that only cause conflict, they will learn how to avoid conflict. The communication will be better and healthier, as it will only be positive and constructive.
3. Encourages Safety
Children should learn about reporting to improve their safety. Through the lesson, they will know they shouldn’t keep quiet when facing challenging situations, such as getting bullied or beaten.
4. Encourages Empathy
Children can learn to be empathetic by simply understanding the impact of their actions. For instance, tattling is sometimes aimed at making someone else look bad. When children know about this, they may be more compassionate and avoid such actions.
Conclusion
There is no formal way of teaching about tattling and reporting; the above are the main tips.
Let the children understand the basic meaning of each term, give examples, and then do practicals. That way, they will understand it better and may improve their actions in the future.