What is empathy?
Define empathy
Empathy is the act of understanding and feeling the emotions someone else is feeling
What is the difference between sympathy and empathy?
Sympathy is feeling sorry for someone who is feeling down, Empathy is understanding how they feel so you can support them.
Share a personal experience where you felt empathy or had someone give you an empathetic response.
You see someone crying out at the Gazebo
talk to them about what's wrong, ask if they want to come to be with your group of friends, stay and sit with them even if they don't want to talk, etc.
What are some things we can do to be empathetic?
Listen closely, think about how the other person might feel, think about what you would want someone to do if you felt that way, other ideas you come up with that are supportive
Practice time! Glenn realized that he forgot his pens and pencils for school today, and you have a big test. You can tell he is worried and upset he is going to get in trouble or not be able to take the test, so you offer him one of your pencils. Is it sympathy or empathy?
Empathy
Is there a time where too much empathy is not helping the situation, or maybe the situation negative?
Provide your response and why
Someone realized they forgot their lunch today
Offer them a part of your lunch, ask a teacher if there are any snacks your friend could have, etc.
Provide an example of when you showed empathy towards a family member.
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Joseph was upset about getting a 65 on his Math test after studying all night. He tells you about it and you tell him, you will do better next time!
Are you showing empathy or sympathy and why?
Sympathy because you did not validate his feelings.
Tell about a time that you had a problem and wished that someone showed you empathy and they did not.
What was the situation and what did you wish they did?
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Your mom had a terrible day at work and is very upset.
Validate moms feelings. Ask her what happened.
Offer her affirming words or a hug.
What kinds of things are important for listening well?
Making eye contact if you are face to face, not thinking about other things, checking that you understand, asking questions to help you better understand
What are some things that someone can say that are sympathetic but not empathetic
Everything will be alright, you'll be okay, it's not that bad, oh man that stinks, oof, etc.
Is there a time where empathy can be more beneficial than sympathy? Or vice versa?
Empathy: When someone needs to feel more understood
Empathy: Helps you connect
Sympathy: When someone needs surface level comfort
Sympathy: Helps heal overwhelming feelings by staying at a healthy but compassionate distance.
Jennifer is pacing outside of the classroom
Ask if everything is okay, think about what might be happening in class that might make someone nervous, sit nearby, or pace with them so they aren't alone while they are nervous unless they want to be, etc.
Why is empathy important?
Sometimes we need to be able to understand how other people are feeling to be able to be good friends to them. It also helps us to figure out why other people are reacting to things the way they are.
Not always. Sometimes, if you can't understand how someone is feeling sympathy is better than being mean or ignoring someone. But sympathy isn't going the extra mile to really understand another person
How do you remember the difference between sympathy and empathy? Do you have a trick that helps you remember?
Share
Levi's dog has the flu and they are really worried about their dog.
Think about how you would feel if your pet was sick, talk to Levi about how they feel, ask to see pictures of their dog if they have any, etc.