The Importance of Safely Sharing with Friends
Sharing is one of the skills you begin teaching your little one as soon as they start grabbing for things. It's an important lesson for their development socially, intellectually, and emotionally. As parents, we often teach this skill without even thinking about its value to those little developing minds.
Why Sharing is Important
Teaching a child to share is a crucial part of their development. It can have a lasting effect on who they become as adults and how they deal with different situations. While you know that sharing makes your child more likable and can be vital in helping them make friends, it goes much deeper than that. There are some profound benefits to learning to share.
People are valued more than objects. This is a big statement, but when your child learns to share the toy they like playing with best, they're also valuing that other child. Pretty amazing concept, isn't it?
Sharing is a sign of love and empathy. When you teach your child to share, you're instilling a deep sense of caring for others in them. Especially if they're learning to communicate with kids they don't even know. You can do this by donating toys they don't play with anymore to less fortunate children.
Sharing is about negotiating. Teaching your child to share isn't training them to give up their stuff when another kid asks for it. There can be some negotiating. Maybe they'll both play with the toy, they'll take turns, or perhaps they'll even swap toys.
Sharing teaches coping skills for disappointment. Sometimes not having a favorite toy is a bummer for little ones. While it's hard for us to see them experience anything but joy, it is a normal part of life, and this is a small way to learn that lesson. 
It teaches patience. Waiting for your turn is so hard when you're younger. The only reason it's a little easier when you're an adult is you've been practicing patience your whole life.
Children learn the value of things. Have you ever seen a child totally not care about a toy until someone else wants it? Of course, you have. It happens all the time. Part of assigning value to objects is realizing that they have value to other people.
Embrace the Sharing Urge
While you understand the importance of sharing when you're dealing with a toddler, it becomes harder for the parents to maintain this approach as their children age. The main reason is that it's expensive to keep buying your child new toys and clothing because they keep lending their stuff to their friends.
First of all, congratulations on teaching your children to be so good at sharing. Honestly, that's the silver lining in all of this.
Secondly, sharing is essential for them when it comes to forging bonds with friends. In their family, they see sharing all the time. You even share a house together. So, when they're sharing with friends, it's a way of cementing their friendships and bonds.
The good news is there's a wonderfully easy way to let them keep sharing and make sure their property finds its way back home – Name Bubbles Labels!
Use Name Bubbles Labels for Sharing
It's great to encourage your children to build those strong bonds with friends - the kind where they share everything, even clothes. That's where labels come into play. Not only do they help you get your child's property back, but they can also reinforce the friendship. How? Every time the borrower sees that name label, it is a subtle reminder that they are borrowing from a good friend.
We love that kids share, but we know how frustrating it is when it feels like you are clothing and entertaining all of the kids that come through your house. In addition to all the food, they're eating. That's part of the reason our labels are so versatile; they can go on just about anything.
Don't believe us – check it out.
• Clothes – You're going to love our Clothing Labels. Laminated press-and-stick labels are designed to go on clothing care tags. Our unlaminated labels are designed for tagless clothing with printed logos and brand imprints. And if you have nowhere to put a sticker, our Iron-On labels give you a sweet solution.
• Toddler toys – Our daycare labels are perfect. There are a variety of sizes, so you can find one to fit just about every toy. We suggest that you skip labeling baby blankets, teething rings, or anything that they put in their mouths for safety's sake.
• Video games – Contact Labels are a good choice when it comes to expensive electronics. Sometimes your name is not enough, and having an email address or phone number can help you get these items returned.
• Phones – Similar to video games, having a contact label on cell phones is a smart idea. Not just for kids' phones either. In fact, it might be something you want to consider for your own phone.
• Dolls and accessories – One of the best things about sharing dolls with friends are the extra adventures that can be imagined. But labeling everything, even doll clothes, prevents hurt feelings down the road. Everyday Labels are just the thing here.
• Stuffed animals – If the care tag has been removed, we're afraid we don't have anything for stuffed animals, but you can use our laminated clothing labels if you keep that tag on. They work like a dream.
• Backpacks and books – School Label Packs are designed for all sorts of school-related gear. It's hard to keep track of school supplies as it is. Once they start sharing, it can be impossible. That is if you don't have things labeled. Don't forget your college and high school kids too. College books are crazy expensive – one lost book is several times more expensive than a package of labels.
• Camping gear – Whether they're tenting in the backyard or going away to summer camp, your children are going to share gear, and if it's not labeled with our Camp Labels, you risk the chance of losing it forever.
• Shoes – Yep, we even make Shoe Labels so your kids can swap shoes all they want. These are especially useful if they go somewhere that dumps all the shoes in one bin to be fished out later. They're also perfect for teen gals who love sharing expensive shoes.
• Snacks – Okay, you're never getting all of those snacks back, but you can get your storage containers back. All of our labels are dishwasher, microwave, and freezer safe. Ergo, they are designed to go on your food containers. Buy a large value pack of labels, get tons of labels for all sorts of containers, and watch them return home like a boomerang.
We want to encourage our children to share and reap all the benefits of learning this skill. We also want them to strengthen their friendship bonds, as some friendships will last a lifetime. On the other hand, no one wants to keep buying stuff because it's been lent out and lost. That's where Name Bubbles steps in so your kids can share, and they still get their stuff back.
Easy-peasy.
Thank you as always for joining us on another riveting edition of The Weekly Bubble. We hope these tips and nuggets of wisdom will help you and your little ones be as prepared as possible for the upcoming camp season.
