Which group for shy anxious 7 year old?

[MagicKeysToAsda]

I am looking for a gentle way for very shy anxious DD to build confidence and friendship skills, outside of school. I'm checking out Badgers (St John's Ambulance), Woodcraft Folk, and Brownies. What else would you recommend looking at? I'd be very grateful for ideas!

Yes I'd agree with something like brownies, it's usually very gentle and inclusive.

Yy to brownies. I started dd at rainbows to build her confidence and it’s really helped her.

Thank you, it's great to hear you've both had good experiences.

My daughter was / is very shy and anxious. She does perform (drama classes but more about building confidence than acting). Worked wonders for her

I'd be looking for something she is naturally good at rather than forcing e.g. a drama group on them if that's not what she's into.

My DS joined a sports club and my DD an acrobatic dance class because that's what they asked to do. It has helped a lot with self confidence.
Martial arts could also be good, but probably most important is the leaders and that she feels comfortable with them / the group.

I'd do brownies too. They have smaller groups within the main groups, so it's good for making friends.

I see what you mean about something she'll be good at. She's very academic, with a physical disability so sporty things are harder. She likes outdoor stuff, exploring etc. Otherwise her preference is a blanket and a book!

I've got boys so they go to beavers/cubs rather than brownies but they love it. They do such a wide range of activities.

Brownies would have been my idea of hell at her age. Do you really think she'll enjoy it? Do you really need to change her?

I'd recommend drama as well, my DD was very quiet when she was young and I feel that the speech work they did in the drama classes really helped her (she still loves it now).

What about any local craft or art classes? Have a look at your local library as they sometimes run events as well, especially during half-term.

If you have a Dobbies garden centre near you they run free monthly workshops for children called Little Seedling clubs, learning about a topic and doing a craft/planting each month, does need to be booked in advance usually but can be done online (sometimes do half-term ones as well).

Some large shopping malls have events or publicise events the shops in it do - DD did a craft event at a Paperchase shop last summer.

Thanks again for the later posts. You're right, I don't want to "change" her Forasheep - if she is a happy calm introvert who likes to be quiet that's totally fine with me, but I am just not feeling she's happy right now, and I'm exploring ways to help build up her friendship skills possibly through a wider group of people.