Then my friend's daughter began to play with my daughter's toy telephone and all hell broke loose. My daughter started screaming till she was red in the face. To make matters worse, my daughter insisted on taking one of the other child's colouring books when we went home. The above incident is one that almost every parent experiences with their children. Yet, they can't help but wonder at their children's selfishness and entertain doubts if they will grow out of this type of behaviour.
Parents have a tendency to evaluate children's behaviour from a lofty adult viewpoint.
However, if they questioned their own parents they are bound to find similar selfish incidents in their own past. The fact is that children are not born with an innate sharing instinct. Very young children have not developed the ability to view the world and the things in it from anyone else's point of view other than their own. There is no specific age when children magically become unselfish and willing to share. Sharing is something that develops with maturity and every child matures at his or her own pace.