Originally published May 2010
By Martha Beach
Dr. Karyn Gordon is an expert on youth, a family consultant, an author, and much more. In her upcoming speaking tour, she will present to eight schools in the Toronto District School Board on the topic of “10 Practical Strategies to Develop Empathy and Gratitude in Children.”
“There’s three parts to empathy: the head, the heart, and the hand,” Gordon says. The head is the intellectual part of understanding what empathy is and what it does, the heart feels what others are feeling, and the hand actually takes action after feeling empathy for someone.
Gordon has done a lot of training with different teachers and school boards. TEACH Magazine recently chatted with Gordon on her top five tips for creating empathy in the classroom.
Tip #1: Fill Their Emotional Bucket
Martha Beach lives and works in Toronto as a freelance fact-checker, editor, and writer for a wide variety of publications. When she’s not working, you’ll find Martha on her yoga mat or hanging out with her daughter and husband.
