Teeagers sociaising in forest

Most parents would hope that once our children go into secondary school they will have the confidence and skills to be able to make their own social plans without too much intervention from us. We want them to be sociable and be able to deepen the friendships that they have at school by making plans to see friends out of school.  It is  important that they do this because as well as building friendships,  it will also teach children about planning, organising, decision making, compromising, etc. They have to choose who they want to see, when they want to see them and what they are going to do. And that is all down to communication. So encouraging your children to do this is a good thing.

Parents want children to learn these skills and to be sociable so there are many ways they can can help with that.

Encouraging Your Children To Arrange Their Social Life

For example, tell your child what the plans are for the week so that they know when there is free time for them to see their friends. Many children like to see friends after school on a Friday as it is a fun, relaxing way to end the school week. Friday is also good as it does not interfere with their homework or waking up early the next day. The weekend is also the perfect time to meet friends, as long as they don’t have any family events planned for them.

So who do they want to see and for how long? And what could they do? Age dependent you may allow them to go to the cinema, bowling, go to a restaurant, go ice skating or roller skating, go to the park, do a sport with friends or just hang out at a friend’s house. Encourage your children to think of lots of ideas of things they can do with their friends so they don’t get stuck when arranging plans.  Some children have been used to having play dates arranged by their parents so it may take them time to adjust to arranging their own social life. If you child needs it hand hold them until they get into the swing of creating a social life for themselves.

How has your child found this shift since starting Secondary School? C0mment below or via my social media accounts.

For more information on friendships please take a look at my successful friendships ebook.