Help Your Child Make Friends: Learnable Social Skills For Preschoolers

Is there anything harder than watching your child struggle to make friends?

All of us know that developing social skills for preschoolers is key. But sometimes, it can feel like we're at a loss or don't know what to do.

Fortunately, as a parent, there's plenty you can do to get started teaching social skills. Here are some ways to help your child make friends.

Practice Play

Learning how to socialize a child can be overwhelming. It can feel like you have to develop a curriculum on top of everything else they're learning. Perhaps you don't feel qualified or like you have the time.

Avoid this temptation! Real-life and playtime are the best ways to develop social skills for preschoolers. They're developmentally appropriate even if they don't feel like work!

Practice play games, in particular, are a great option. Anything that engages your preschooler's imagination. You can have them create skits, play "house," or any other game that gets the creative juices flowing.

And if you are feeling overwhelmed, remember that services are available. Here's where you can learn more about them.

Group Work

How does your preschooler respond to group settings? Can he or she work with other kids cooperatively? Do they repeatedly take on the same role in the group dynamic?

Sports, extracurricular activities, and simple group projects are a great way to work on social skills. Make them fun, but also give children a goal or outcome to aim for.

Being able to reinforce their behavior with a celebration at the end is a great way to show the value of working together!

Active Listening

As a parent, you know how important listening skills are for success. Young kids and adults need to know how to actively listen and absorb information for so many different reasons.

As part of your social skills for kids repertoire, practice active listening skills. Games like telephone, freeze dance, and telling group stories are all fun ways to practice.

Allow Your Childs Emotions To Develop

It can be tempting as a parent to shield your child. But emotional range is a key skill all children need to succeed. Letting your child experience the full spectrum of their emotions is actually a great tool for development.

Allow your child to experience failure. If they get sad or frustrated, coach them through it without telling them how to feel about a situation. Aim to validate their experience instead of changing it.

This may be more difficult for you than it is for your child. You love them and don't want to see them hurt. But trust in the fact that you're helping them become more rounded young people. 

Social Skills For Preschoolers

Developing social skills for preschoolers isn't a perfect science. But there's plenty you can do without it feeling overwhelming or impossible to fix, even if your child is struggling.

Aim to activate your child's creative skills through imagination. Get them to work in groups and encourage them to take on new roles. And when difficult situations arise, allow them to experience their emotions instead of stifling them.

For more everyday mom tips, check out our blog.