Dealing with conflicts with children can be challenging. Young children get very emotional and are often crying. Especially children in Infants years, the smallest thing can cause a disagreement, usually in the playground over toys. I find the best way to deal with conflicts is to be calm and get each child to explain what happened, this shows you are not taking sides and you are listening to both, explain the difference in right and wrong. Try to make them understand if they were put in the same position, how they would feel and get them to apologise.
Also, younger children, especially those who may be an only child find it harder to share. This is another issue affecting disagreements in this age group. For example, during art class, sharing colours, some children don’t have the patience to wait for their turn; this causes little conflicts amongst children. So I try to explain to them that they should be patient, be considerate of others and wait for their turn.
Whereas with young people you need to have a different strategy in order to deal with disagreements. This age group are strong willed and most will have their own views and ideas. They are more independent and have their individual personalities hence will clash more. They should be encouraged to discuss the issue and come to a mutual agreement. Learning to accept others views and opinions and to respect this. Adults should give young people the opportunity to resolves issues themselves and intervene only when needed. I feel when dealing with young people, you need to be able to listen to them, let them explain the issue before jumping in giving them your view. If the matter is discussed, they will realise for themselves what is the right answer.