Do you guys force your kids to share?

No we don’t

My kids won’t be forced. Of course I’ll teach them that they should share, and some toys will be bought with the intention of sharing, but if I buy them a toy for them individually I won’t expect them to share it with the other

Yes & no. Certain things they don’t have to share, like their favorite stuffy or their favorite blanket or something that was bought specifically for them individually.

Most toys cant be "shared" tbh, they need to take turns.

We have a communal toy box in the living room where there are a mixture of things bought for my son & daughter, they have their own toys in their bedrooms. If they’re playing and one has something first then it’s theirs until they give it up, I use the “she had it first so you’ll have to wait till she’s finished” rule. I also believe in independent play so if one is busy doing something and being bothered by the other one I will remove and distract that bothersome child 😂

We have a lot of shared toys. My girls are 18 months apart and have a lot of the same interests in toys. They do have special toys that aren’t shared unless they choose to. I usually keep those separate and they have to ask for them. We still encourage sharing and taking turns with the communal toys.

If they were given it together, then we’d say be nice/patient/play with other toys and wait til they’re done and then you can but otherwise it’s their toy if they were given it. It’s confusing over here tho my kids have lil stints of switching so I lose track who’s it is rn😂

I am not here yet, but I will be trying to have my kids understand there’s things we share and then there’s things we don’t. ❤️ and then some things are completely up to you!

Taking turns on community toys like going down a slide or something yes. Understanding that if their sibling was playing with something that’s a community toy like a set of cars then they can wait their turn when their sibling is done. Yet also having special toys they never have to share such as brand new birthday toys or their favorite stuffed animal or something.

I never force but I always encourage and explain that it is kind. They are generally pretty good at sharing their toys but there are a certain few they are very attached to. I remind them to ask if they want one of their sister’s toys and it is up to the owner whether they let them play with it or not. If they want something the other is playing with they have to wait until they’re finished.

Not always but if they suddenly want the toy the other has then they have to offer to share and swap toys. If the other kid says no though then it's a no and I don't force it

Some of the toys are their “special toys”. I only make them share if they’re hoarding like multiple toys and hogging everything from the other. I’d say “you have quite a few, you have enough to share with your brother” other than that, it’s usually first come first serve kind of rule like “he was playing with that first, you’ll have to wait and be patient until they’re done” but my son is still too young to understand the asking for a toy situation. My girl understands but gets frustrated when she asks him kindly for a toy, and he says no.

No. Because i think it’s an excellent lesson. You ask “hey brother can i use that”. And if brother says “no, it’s mine”…then it’s his. Because even as adults we CHOOSE to not share and that’s okay. Clear boundaries and hearing “no” is good for kids—at least my kids. we will encourage sharing as best as possible but in no way will we ENFORCE it. We also have “everybody toys”. Meaning, we have to take turns because it doesn’t specifically belong to anyone but is a toy we take turns using (every 20 minutes we take turns). I have a kids kitchen aid that my boys fight over….and it’s an “everybody toy”. So one person will play chef and get to use. While the other does something else and eventually we switch.

They don’t have to share their own toys but there are family toys or my stuffed animals that they need to share

On the whole, yes I'm encouraging them to share. But my son has "special" toys and I've told him it's OK for him not to want his little sister to play with them. She's only 7 months so doesn't play with much but we've got out his old toys and we've told him they are for her so they need to share. He's almost 4