In order for children/teenagers to develop perspective taking skills they need to practice. For those who find perspective taking challenging, it can be helpful to start with simple activities and then progress to more complex ones where a deeper understanding is needed.
Once the child/teenager begins to gain an understanding of how to interpret what others may be thinking or feeling in straight forward scenarios (such as the ones in the perspective taking cards) they can move onto more complex ones. For example, discussing how favorite characters may be feeling at certain points in books and movies. It is then important to encourage the child/teenager to generalize and use their new skills in their own lives.
Perspective Taking Cards
Perspective Taking Cards are useful for introducing children/teenagers to the concept of perspective taking. They provide simple visuals of familiar situations for the child/teenager to discuss and consider.
If the child/teenager is struggling to interpret the image, it can be beneficial to offer prompts or focus on the emotions of one character at a time.
For example:
What is he feeling?
Why might he be feeling _________, could it be because __________.
It can also be helpful to prompt the child/teenager to connect it to their own lives by asking them how they would feel if they were one of the characters or if any of the situations has ever happened to them.
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