Jul. 28, 2009 at 12:36pm
Why do children steal?
We understand that children steal for a myriad of reasons and learning that it is wrong to take something that doesn't belong to you is a part of growing up. Articles on the subject point out that in order to stop a child from stealing parents should ask themselves why their child is stealing-but the answer isn't always what they expect to find.
Last week we received a package in the mail containing some scarves used in our WHOOSH! exhibit. With the scarves was a note from an 8 year old boy apologizing for taking the pieces of fabric from KidsQuest and hoping that he could return to play in the Museum. We were surprised and impressed, not only at the child's very nice note, but at the parents who discovered the theft and used it as a learning opportunity for their son. I called the family to follow-up and thank them for returning the scarves, only to find that the reason he took them was equally as impressive.
The little boy has a 9 year old sister with Down syndrome who wasn't with him at KidsQuest that day. His sister loves different types of fabric and is always carrying around pieces of fabric in her hands...can you see where this is going? He took the fabric, not for himself, but for his sister because he thought she would really like that particular color and texture. We were all taken aback by the thoughtful, caring heart of this little boy, but also, by the mother who took the opportunity to explain that it's not okay to steal even if the intent is to brighten the day of someone you care about.
While not all experiences with children stealing reflect the amazing heart of a young child we wanted to share this story with you and we hope that you will share some of your own stories with us.
Here are a few articles we found that talk about why children steal and what parents can do:
http://www.mental-health-matters.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=261
http://www.parenting.com/article/Child/Development/What-to-Do-When-Children-Steal
http://life.familyeducation.com/parenting/morality/45313.html
Last week we received a package in the mail containing some scarves used in our WHOOSH! exhibit. With the scarves was a note from an 8 year old boy apologizing for taking the pieces of fabric from KidsQuest and hoping that he could return to play in the Museum. We were surprised and impressed, not only at the child's very nice note, but at the parents who discovered the theft and used it as a learning opportunity for their son. I called the family to follow-up and thank them for returning the scarves, only to find that the reason he took them was equally as impressive.
The little boy has a 9 year old sister with Down syndrome who wasn't with him at KidsQuest that day. His sister loves different types of fabric and is always carrying around pieces of fabric in her hands...can you see where this is going? He took the fabric, not for himself, but for his sister because he thought she would really like that particular color and texture. We were all taken aback by the thoughtful, caring heart of this little boy, but also, by the mother who took the opportunity to explain that it's not okay to steal even if the intent is to brighten the day of someone you care about.
While not all experiences with children stealing reflect the amazing heart of a young child we wanted to share this story with you and we hope that you will share some of your own stories with us.
Here are a few articles we found that talk about why children steal and what parents can do:
http://www.mental-health-matters.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=261
http://www.parenting.com/article/Child/Development/What-to-Do-When-Children-Steal
http://life.familyeducation.com/parenting/morality/45313.html
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