Playdates

jenna Said,

I hear other parents at work talking about playdates that they make for their children. At what age is this appropriate?

Kirsten Said,

At three your daughter should be having some interaction with friends her own age.

My daughter has cousins and other neighborhood kids about her age and she has "make friends" with them. I guess she considers it a playdate when my sister and I trade babysitting, because then they get to play together.

If your child has a special friend then you could make arrangements with that child's mom to get the kids together, if there are no neighborhood kids or anyone in the family about that age then you might see if you have a friend about the same age you child could make friends with.

I guess I don't see that structured playdates are a neccissity at this age, but she should be around kids her own age once in awhile. That way she can learn how to make friends and all the social benefits that come with it.

teacher Said,

Toddlers and preschoolers need social interaction. It's very important they learn how to communicate socially and emotionally to their peer. If your child has a friend that they talk about consistently and asks, "Can I go to___ house? or Can____come to my house?" It's socially acceptable to set up a "playdate" with the other parent. Remember, first time can be scary so it should probably be a "playdate" with both set of parents and then gradually work up to just one parent supervision.