Have you noticed social skills missing in your kids? Caroline Maguire, author of Why Will No One Play With Me?, joins me to discuss how to support your child and build them up through play.
Here’s some of the areas we cover:
A Visual Activity to Help Kids Understand the Power of Their Words
Why I Love Playdates!
Unique Summer Camp Ideas - Help Kids Make New Connections!
Learning and Remembering Information about your Friends
How awesome does it feel when a friend remembers something about you?
One of the best ways to get to know someone is to have conversations and ask questions. When you're asking questions and learning more about them, like their favorite food, season, or movie - try to remember those things for later.
Yellow Pages for a New Neighbor
Inside: A guest post from Greg Heilers at education.com with a writing activity that is also a good way to meet new people and potentially start a new friendship.
Whether they know it or not, fourth graders are natural authors. They’ve got lots to say, even if it happens to come with fearless spelling sometimes. And every time they create a sentence, whether it’s for a card, letter, shopping list, or complaint to you, they’re expanding their reading and writing skills.
Two Fun Ways to Practice Conversation Skills
Social Skills Activities to Help Kids See How Their Behavior Impacts Others
Tips for Setting Up Playdates
You’re on the phone with the school counselor, talking about the concerns you have about your son’s social skills. You hear the words you’ve been dreading - “Mrs. Jackson, one of the best ways to work on these skills is on a play date with one other child. Maybe it makes sense to try to set up a few playdates for him”. But how do you do that? Where do you even begin?
Setting up and prepping for a playdate doesn’t need to be super complicated or take a lot of time. Check out these tips to help you set up and host a successful playdate for your child!
12 Awesome Books about Friendship
Friendships can be awesome, but they can also be complicated. For kids who struggle to understand the basics of how to be a friend, or what to do when things get a little more tricky, using books is a great way to start conversations and talk about friendship with kids. There are so many great books out there - here are some of my favorites divided up by category.
The Best Ways to support kids in social situations
I was invited to join a group of wonderful bloggers to write for the series Happy New Year, Healthy Kids. This series is focused on ways we can help our kids be happy and healthy in this new year. But what do social skills and friendship have to do with health?
Think for a minute about the positive friendships in your life. Healthy friendships provide support, make you feel connected with others, reduce your stress and increase your happiness. It’s so wonderful to have these people around you! In order for kids to start and maintain friendships so they can experience these benefits too, kids need to learn social skills and how to interact positively with others.
Book Review: Girls' Q&A Book on Friendship
I recently found the website of Annie Fox, M. Ed., which is full practical advice for teens, parents and educators! Annie Fox, M. Ed. has written a new book for elementary school aged girls about dealing with friendship issues called Girls Q&A Book on Friendship. As a school counselor, I would have used this book all the time! This book answers questions that I was faced with on a regular basis. The social scenario for girls is complex and ever changing. This is a great book for girls to read to know that they are not alone, and gives them practical advice for dealing with real life situations.
5 Helpful hints for a play date at your home
Play dates are a popular way for kids to get together and hang out, but some kids struggle on play dates. If you think your child may have difficulty on a play date, it may work best to have a first play date with a new friend at your own house. Your child may feel more comfortable in a familiar environment. You’ll be able to keep an eye and ear out during the play date so you can step in if things start to break down. Here are some helpful hints when setting up and hosting a play date at your home.
