'That's mine, not yours!' 'You can't ride a bike as well as me!' 'He always gets to go first!' As tempers reach boiling point, the cries escalate to, 'I hate you!' Brotherly and sisterly love is forgotten as blows are often exchanged and tears flow. Then come the accusations as the referee steps in -'He started it!' 'No, you did!' It's a scenario all too familiar to parents and to nannies - sibling rivalry.
A spiteful but temporary spat between brothers and sisters? Perhaps. But how their relationship develops can be crucial to the rest of their lives and depends largely on the way parents and other carers, including nannies, approach any conflict.
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