AIBU to think that a 6/7 year old (year 2) should have friends

[ThrowThoseCurtainsWide]

Basically that. Do your 6/7 year old DCs have close friends? Not just acquaintances, but proper "besties" for want of a better term.

DD is 5 and she has had a best friend since nursery and has developed other really close bonds with other children in her class.

DS is nearly 7. He has acquaintances, but (aside from his sister) has never developed any close friendships. We are about to start the process of an ASD diagnosis for him - I've seen the traits in him since he was tiny.

It got me thinking, have most children developed some close friendships by that age? Or am I just looking at the others in my DCs school but missing the bigger picture?

I think they generally do.

My youngest has 2 "besties" and is always waving to someone from school when we're out.

My eldest didn't - and still doesn't have any friends at 13. He is Autistic and this has massively impacted on his social awareness making it hard for him to make friends when he was younger - now he says he prefers to be himself and doesn't actually want any.

My DD is 6, yr 2 and will just play with whoever wants to play what she wants to play, I don't think it's anything to worry about at this stage, and is also preferable to just having 1 'bestie' at this age.
FWIW I was the same growing up, as was XH. We both had a wide circle of friends but not very tight friendships as such.

My son had a bestie group 5/6 boys who'd always play together. It might be because the boys in his class preferred group games like Tag and football though.

My oldest is 6 and doesn’t have a best friend at school. He plays with everyone but mostly plays with his brother who is 5.

My dgs6 plays with different people every day. On our way home he shouts goodbye to every boy and girl that we pass.

No I don’t think so. My 6 year old will play with whoever is around.

My 7 year old is cheerful, confident and sociable, but will choose an activity over people — so he’ll play football with whoever is playing it at break, or swap Pokemon cards, or go on the jungle gym with whoever else wants to. I think that’s perfectly normal, and I like that he has a strong sense of his own preferences. Several of his male and female friends do similar. It certainly seems more benign than some of the intense friendships I see in his class.

My 5 y.o dd is in Primary 1 and has had a close set of friends from nursery, whereas my 7 y.o in Primary 4 doesn't have a bestie or people to associate with outside school. She's happy wandering around at playtime alone but sometimes mingles with class mates. It makes me sad because she does say that she wants to play sometimes but isn't invited or is told no when she asks. I put it down to me and dw both working ft so not getting the chance to make playdates when she was younger. dd is such a friendly, considerate child so it does hurt when I think of her feeling alone during the school day. We are in a small village with a large amount of SAHM so many friendships were made through parents meeting and children playing after nursery.

It's always been my fear that dd would feel left out in school. I know friendships can change a lot during primary so I'm hoping she will develop stronger friendships as she grows up.