Helping Your Child with their Social Skills

AD – this is a paid collaboration.

The ability to interact effectively with different people is an important skill for your child to master. They have to learn how to respond to people, how to communicate their needs, and how to be receptive to the needs of others. It takes time for children to be able to connect with others in this way, and there is a lot we can do as parents to help them hone these skills. Read on for some tips from a private school in Hertfordshire on how you can help your child develop their social skills. 

Encourage new activities

Giving your child the opportunity to try out different kinds of activities outside of school will allow them to interact with children who aren’t in their normal social circle. They will learn how to respond to children with different personality types, which develops their communication skills. Depending on the activity, they may also learn how to work within a group, following rules and taking turns, all of which are important social skills for children to master. The structure inherent in certain activities can help ease any social anxiety your child might feel about meeting new people and trying new things. 

Play dates

Set up regular play dates with your child and their friends so they can interact outside of the school environment and learn new ways to communicate with each other. Play is an important way for children to learn social skills as they share toys and take turns during games. There may be some conflict which will be a good learning opportunity for them. Your child will also learn about being a good host or guest, and how to listen to their friend’s needs. 

Role play

If your child is shy and finds socialising difficult, you could practise at home by role playing different scenarios and conversations. If they are nervous about, for example, going to a party, you could act out the scenario and give your child some ready-made conversation openers to use so they feel more prepared. 

As with all skills, social skills are developed over time and the best thing you can do as a parent is to encourage your child to step out of their comfort zone regularly and interact with different people. This gives children the opportunity to practise and hone their social skills for a variety of situations.