As social beings that we are we need to create bonds with others. Friends are necessary to create good social, emotional and mental development. It makes us feel good, they accompany us in hard times and good times and it serves as a consolation in the face of difficulties. We need to have good friendships, that is why it is a very important value to instill in the little ones. We show you some tips to teach the value of friendship to your children.
Friendship in children
Children experience friendship differently than adults do.. A complete stranger can be an unconditional friend in a matter of minutes, something that adults need time and confidence to generate such strong bonds. Children share games, experiences, tastes, hobbies, discoveries, and secrets. Elucubrations of elders and incredible stories. Friendship in children is healthy, without interests and
Thanks to friendship, children develop skills such as empathy, companionship, verbal skills, cognitive skills such as decision making and problem solving, cooperation, self-esteem, trust and sharing. Children begin to have social relationships as such from the age of 2, and from there they become more complex as they develop. Through friendship children They develop their own identity and create close ties with their peers.
There are shy children and others more outgoing. Depending on their way of being, they will have a tendency to interact with other children in an easier way or with more reluctance. Regardless of your way of being, children need to have friends for healthy development. They will learn things that they will not learn otherwise. A child without friends is a sad child.
In addition to the value of friendship, we must teach them how to relate to their friends to have healthy and happy relationships. Let's see some tips to teach the value of friendship to your children.
How to teach the value of friendship to your children
- Use respectful language. Always speak from respect and affection. A friend does not pick on you, reject you, or offend you.
- Help others. We will all have a problem or sad moment at some point, and we will have to trust others to help and comfort us. It is as necessary to help as it is to ask for help.
- Rejoice in the good things that happen to our friends. It all adds up, and that a friend of ours is happy makes us happy. Learning to share the joys make them multiply.
- With friends it is shared. Experiences, toys, food ... friendship is sharing.
- Spend time with friends. Like any relationship, friendship requires spending time together and close contact. Friendship is cared for every day to maintain it. You can help him by inviting his friends over.
- Worry about friends. When someone loves you, they care about you and take care of you. He does not want anything bad to happen to you and when it happens he is always there.
- Friendship is selfless. There are no underlying interests or then it will not be a true friendship.
- Express our affection. Shows of affection are necessary so that others know that we love and appreciate them. Words of support, hugs and kisses are expressions of affection that we all appreciate.
- Problems are fixed by talking. There will always be some moment of shock. It is necessary to explain to them that we will not always agree with our friends, that they have their own ideas and beliefs and we must respect each other (empathy). When a problem is created, what we must do is speak it directly so as not to complicate the situation further.
If your child is too shy, I recommend that you read our article "How to help your child overcome shyness." There we give you practical advice to help them relate better.
Because remember ... friendship is one of the greatest treasures we can have. They can last a lifetime if we take good care of them.