Feb 062008
 

Playmates For Your Only Child: Why and How

Even from age two, a child can relate to another child and can spend brief periods of time in (parallel) play and companionship. The need for such play with peers increases with age. The ability to engage in such interaction for longer duration grows with the years.

An only child in particular benefits greatly by such interaction. In the absence of a sibling, the only child gets an opportunity to face new experiences like conflicts in sharing, joy in giving and receiving, and above all, companionship with an equal.

Parallel play for short durations: Between the age of two and four, children may just engage in parallel play, and when they do play together, there may be greater conflicts in sharing. It is a good idea to leave your child for shorter intervals initially.

Planning ahead: While it is true that parents of several children don’t find the need to fix play-dates for their children as keenly as parents of only children do, it is not true that children are content to play with just their siblings.

While a parent of several children can say, “go play with your brother”, for a parent of an only child it means having to plan in advance and finding good companions. “I always use the weekend to plan who will come over to our place on which days, and where Anna will go on the remaining days,” says Norma. Give other parents a couple of days notice.

Predictability to the routine will greatly ease your stress to find regular playmates. “My daughter plays with her music teacher’s daughter Evelyn, on Friday evenings after her class finishes, and Evelyn comes over to our place on Wednesdays.” says Norma. “So that leaves just three more days to fix, as weekends are spent entirely with us parents in doing groceries or visiting a place of interest.”

Location, location, location: Parents of onlies who live far away from kid-filled neighborhoods may find it difficult to ferry friends to and from their homes. The benefits of a large neighborhood cannot be over-emphasized, particularly when your child is an only.

One can either move into a larger, kids-a-plenty area, or alternately plan well in advance and make arrangements for your child to be picked and dropped at her friends’ places and vice versa. “It takes a long ride to reach my daughter’s friend’s place. It is tough, but we are managing as of now. A year or two later, we may consider moving to a larger neighborhood,” says Jonathan.

Be on the lookout: While on a holiday, take a walk to the park where you are likely to meet other kids of your child’s age. This will make the holiday enjoyable for your child too.

Go closer to source: If you are unable to find friends and playmates for your child, go to those places where you are likely to find children of your child’s age. Enroll in a club, attend church, volunteer for a local social organization, hang out at the library- you may find other parents who have similar-aged children. Reading your local community newspaper is a good way to find more information on all this. Bigger newspapers have sections or pullouts for local community news and events.

but…

While ensuring adequate company for your only child, it is also important to not force friendships on him. If your child is temperamentally withdrawn and shy, allow him to grow out of it instead of forcing him to be with company.

Also, if your child is uncomfortable about being with a particular family or child, respect his preferences and do not compel him to continue the relationship.

Comments

comments

 Posted by at 8:04 am

Only Children Forums Finding playmates for your Only Child

This topic contains 7 replies, has 2 voices, and was last updated by  Mayra 4 years, 1 month ago.

  • Creator
    Topic
  • #1032

    admin
    Keymaster

    Playmates For Your Only Child: Why and How Even from age two, a child can relate to another child and can spend brief periods of time in (parallel) pl
    [See the full post at: Finding playmates for your Only Child]

Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)
  • Author
    Replies
  • #1087

    Gabi

    I’m lucky as I live in a quiet neighborhood full of first time parents and small kids so finding a play partner is not a big challenge. After a couple of weeks of experimenting I decided I want to avoid some mothers just because their behavior was toxic, bad parenting and all.

    #1109

    Amy Pert

    I was an only child myself and I lived in a big rural area where there was no kids around. I usually had fun with my imagination and ran around the woods and all that. I hated it though. It was one thing to be an only child, and not have anyone else to play with, it was even worse living in a rural town that was far away from the best places for kids to play.

    Anyways, things got better when we moved to the city, I met a lot of cool kids my age and it really helped me through life.

    #1119

    Shandra

    I think this can be tough for parents that do not live in the big city. If you are in a rural area, it can be difficult to get your child to places where they can socialize that is not a school. This is where planning comes into play, as you mentioned here. It can be done, but it will take some effort.

    #1228

    Negasi

    I am looking for playmate 10 years old only child near zipcode 20723 Maryland.

    #1229

    Negasi

    By the way my child a boy.

    #1253

    Jenny

    We are looking for a playmate near zip code 20723 (Maryland) for our ten years old son. We mostly desire parents with closer age to our son (that is, 9,10, 11 Years old). To be paly mate or friend to our son. We are Christian and nice people.

    #8071

    Mayra

    Looking for playmates near Claremont, CA for our 3.5 year old daughter. She is well behaved and would love to have a friend to play with. Parks, painting, local museums- I can plan it all.

Viewing 7 replies - 1 through 7 (of 7 total)

You must be logged in to reply to this topic.