Making Friends
Email 1
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Hi Parents,
Friends are an important part of life. We all want and need them. Making friends, however, is an art that everyone needs to acquire—your preschooler included. Please watch this month’s Online Parenting Class it is an excellent source of help to you in teaching your preschooler how to make friends the right way.
One of the best things about being a parent is being able to watch your children enjoy the things that come with having friends. Their smiles, giggles, fun, and games are memories you will place in your heart and hold on to for a lifetime. Let me know how I can be of help to you in teaching your child to make and be a good friend.
https://vimeo.com/parentministry/review/149140807/7866a27705
Praying For You,
Preschool Pastor
Email 2
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Parents,
We’re still on the subject of friends—how to help your preschooler make them and be one.
After all, friends are a very important part of life. Jesus had friends. Twelve good friends and from those twelve, three close friends, and from those three, one BFF named John.
I hope you have had a chance to watch the Online Parenting Class video on How to Make New Friends. I also want to encourage you to follow the suggestions below so that your preschooler’s early experiences in the world of friends will be positive experiences.
#1 Don’t overwhelm your preschooler by offering too many playdates and too many faces at a time.
#2 Don’t push your preschooler to be friends with someone YOU think they should be friends with. Let them gravitate towards the people they feel most compatible with. That’s what you do, isn’t it?
#3 Take the time to really know your child—what they enjoy doing, where they enjoy spending time, the activities they most enjoy, and whether or not they prefer small groups, one-on-one, or large group settings. Take your cue from these things to put your child in these situations to make friends.
#4 Teach, use, and reinforce their use of manners at home so they will use them with others.
#5 Don’t expect too much. Preschoolers are learning how to make and be friends. They’re going to experience bouts of selfishness, shyness, aggressiveness, and tattling. Work with them to solve these issues instead of condemning them for it.
#6 Be an example of what a good friend is to your friends and to your spouse.
God knows the value of friendships. That’s why he put the following verses in the Bible for us to remember. Teach your preschooler to know these verses, too.
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. ~Proverbs 17:17
And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. ~Luke 6:31
Partnering with you,
Preschool Pastor
Video Script
Finding a new friend is tough at any age, but especially difficult as a young child.
This is your child’s first time to practice the art of caring for others, playing with others, and the “give and take” of a really good friendship.
There are grown adults that struggle with those skills, so how can we expect our children to do it.
Well, your child has something that no one else has… they have an awesome parent like you to help guide them through this scary stage.
Here are 4 ideas to help your child develop new friendships.
First, teach your child to look for a friend with similar interests. Without this direction your child will most likely try to be friend with the most popular, outgoing, or athletic children in their class. Help them to look past that obvious stuff, and choose a friend that defines “fun” in a similar way as them. If your child loves sports then they are looking for an athletic friend. If your child loves imaginary play, then they are looking for the kid on the playground turning a stick into a sword with their imagination.
Second, Teach your child to be friendly. We are all naturally selfish. So don’t be surprised when your child tries to make their new friendships all about them. You’ll need to teach your child to take turns with their friend and let them choose what to play. You’ll also need to teach your child to ask their friend questions about their life, and to offer a sincere compliment. These are amazing life skills and this is a great time to practice them.
Third, Encourage your child to have a variety of friends. Explain that it’s okay to have more than one friend and to have different kinds of friends. Your child may have a video game friend, a lunchroom friend and a friend who likes to climb trees. And there’s no reason to force someone to choose between friends. Instead, encourage your child to try to get along with the friends of his new friends. They might as well learn now that it’s unfair to expect our friends to only be friends with us.
Finally, my favorite way to teach your child about friendships is to let them watch you with your friends. Tell them the story of your friendships. Tell them how you became friends. Let them ask your friends questions about the type of friend you are. This models for your child the reward of building meaningful friendships.
One of the best gifts God gives us in life is a real friend. By helping your child learn how to be a friend, you are opening a world of joy and fellowship to them that will last a lifetime.
TIP: Choose a hashtag for your tweets and use it consistently. That will tell Twitter to store a list of your tweets on one place for later reference.
Tweet One: Friends are the flowers of life #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Two: To make friends you have to be a friend #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Three: Jesus is the best friend you’ve got #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Four: Teach your preschooler to make friends #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Five: Learning to be a friend is a process #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Six: A friend loves at all times #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Seven: First friends are important friends #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Eight:Friends share, care, and help #Friends #urchurchparentministry
Tweet Nine: Friends forgive and accept you as you are #Friends #urchurchparentministry