One of the best things about life is having friends. You can enjoy your time with them, depend on them, and be honest with them. Without friends, what would the world be like? Because you’re a parent, you know how important friendship is and want nothing more than to help your kids make and value these special bonds with other people. If you can believe it, you actually have a big impact on how well your kids make friends with other kids their age.
At our Rockville day care, parents and caregivers play a crucial role in guiding children towards healthy social interactions, a key skill for making lifelong friends.
Having trouble making friends can be caused by problems with learning and paying attention. Some people have trouble communicating or understanding what they hear, making it hard to have a conversation. Other times, they do things that make it hard to make friends.
Making and keeping friends takes skill. Some kids get it early on, while others need more time. Kids sometimes just haven’t met anyone they can connect with.
It can also be hard to get things done. Some kids are too scared or nervous to talk to other people. Some people can start a conversation but don’t know what to discuss. Or, they might talk about something the other kids aren’t interested in and not notice that the other kids aren’t paying attention.
If a child has a hard time making friends, it might not be because of who they are. Not being liked or funny doesn’t mean that a child isn’t. It could just mean that the child needs help making friends.
You can help kids who are struggling to make good friends and stay out of cliques by telling them to “find the right fit” instead of “fitting in.” It’s good for kids to think about what they truly care about and how those things might or might not fit in with their friends.
Our Rockville day care recommends encouraging your kids to make friends with other kids they like, including those from different backgrounds and kids with different interests. Focusing too much on your children’s friendships, teams, or clubs can lead them to worry about their status. Instead, emphasize the importance of having meaningful friendships.
Here are some things you can do to encourage your kids to meet new people, make friends, and get to know each other.
Understanding how important friendships are in a child’s life is crucial. Kids learn to care about others and trust and respect each other from their friends. They give people experiences that make them feel better about their self-worth and give them chances to deal with disagreements and conflicts. As kids move into adolescence and beyond, their friends become even more important in shaping their values, giving them emotional support, and affecting their choices.
Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize, understand, and control our own and other people’s feelings. A child with high emotional intelligence can understand how others feel, deal with problems, and strengthen relationships. Encourage your child to talk about how they feel, teach them how to name their emotions, and show them how to control them well. Storytelling and role-playing are great ways to show how social interactions work on a deeper level.
Give your kids chances to interact with other kids their age. Take them on play dates and to places where other kids play. Also, they should be encouraged to join social groups that interest them. The more they participate in group activities, the more chances they have to make new friends and improve their social skills. As they spend more time with other kids, they’ll feel more confident in making friends.
For kids, especially very young ones, they are the center of the world. Folks don’t always understand that other people have needs and that their needs can’t always come first.
Show your kids how to recognize and care about other people’s needs. Let them know it’s okay if they don’t always want to do the same things as you. To be friends, you don’t have to always want to do the same things. One of the best ways to show that you really care about someone is to do what they’d rather do!
You may want to be there for every step of your child’s social development, but they need to make friends on their own. Being independent helps you feel better about your own abilities and learn how to solve problems. As a safety net, be there to help and guide your child, but let them take the lead.
Our Rockville daycare shares that kids learn a lot from what they observe. Kids can learn how to behave well with others by seeing you do it in your relationships. This means being respectful when disagreeing, listening carefully, and being kind. By making your home a place that values good relationships, you teach your child indirectly how important friendships are.
It’s important to help kids make good friends and teach them how to spot and deal with bad behavior like bullying. Make sure your child knows they can talk to you about their problems and encourage open communication. Teach them the difference between being assertive and aggressive, and make sure they know how important it is to get help when dealing with negative people.
With love, patience, and an understanding heart, you can help your child foster meaningful friendships. As parents and caregivers at our Rockville daycare, it’s our job to give kids the tools they need to develop and maintain these lifelong friendships. And while it might be hard to make strong friendships at first, the bonds that form are well worth the trouble.
Supporting your child’s friendships also means staying involved and up-to-date on their social life, being willing to talk about their friends, and being there for them when they need help. Parents can do a lot to help their kids make and keep good friends by doing these things.
MCCA has been recognized by the Maryland State Legislature for its commitment to Montgomery County issued a quality programs and special needs child care Proclamation in 2016 to MCCA for its commitment to Montgomery County child care for more than 50 years. MCCA was also selected as a 2018 nonprofit finalist for a MOXIE Award for boldness and innovation
MCCA is the oldest nonprofit licensed child care provider in Montgomery County and started its work in 1968 as a Community Action Project of the War on Poverty. Recognizing the need for quality child care programs in their neighborhoods, a group of local activists formed an association to establish centers in Montgomery County that would serve a diverse population and establish high standards for child care. Now, more than 50 years later, MCCA’s dedicated and expertly trained staff continue their tradition of providing high quality child care and play-based education for children.
Families with school aged children who can afford their child care expenses during the school year often struggle to afford the all-day programs they need when school is out for the summer. The Richard Krampf Summer Adventures Scholarship Fund was established to help provide children a safe and stimulating place to spend their weeks when school is out. Please contact an MCCA Director for details on how to apply.