Do your children have close friends of the opposite sex?

[ophelia275]

I am just wondering if your child tends to have close friends of the opposite sex and if so, roughly what age did they start playing together?

My ds currently plays with both boys and girls but probably much more with the boys. I am wondering if this will continue or if kids tend to play with the opposite sex to as they get older?

variable.
2 daughters. one played with mainly girls in primary then mixed in secondary . other was girls all the way.
2 sons. one was mixed in primary and mixed in secondary.
other boys all the way!

DD is 5 and definitely prefers girls to boys (in theory at least) but quite happily plays with boys at school and the neighbours kids as well. If asked who are her friends though, she will name only girls.

My DS is 4 and going to school in September his 3 closest friends are girls and he gets invited to all the girls parties, he never plays with the boys. I was a bit concerned so I asked at pre school and the boys mostly play power rangers or dr who and ben 10 and my DS doesnt have a clue about any of those things.

He has always played with girls as he has a 5 yr old sister and most of my friends have girls!!! My dd who is 5 always plays with girls will play with boys if only boys about, ie my mums neighbour who has 4 boys but otherwise girls all the way!!

Dd's closest friends before going to school were all boys (none of my friends had girls)
At nursery she made friends with a boy and they were inseparable throughout and in reception. Now they barely acknowledge each other.
In Y1, she made friends with a different boy and they have remained exceptionally close friends ever since. They are now 15 and are in the same class at secondary school, belong to the same swimming club, and hang around in the same group. She still sleeps over at his house, in his room, and I have absolutely no problem with that. They are just brilliant mates.
If anyone (ie a grandparent) suggests they might be a good girl/boyfriend combination dd is nearly sick with outrage
He is wonderful and adorable and I would have him round here any time and am really pleased dd has a friend like that. They also bicker like siblings but have never fallen out.
I think that's a friendship for life.

Ds is 10 and he plays with girls as part of the wider group, but has never shown any interest in inviting one home! They tend to be quite tomboyish the ones he likes to play with.

DS1 - mixed friends at nursery, then all his best friends were girls between reception and year 2. He's end of year 3 now, and generally plays with the boys.

DS2 - will play with both, but best friends are all boys.

DS is 6, and his best friend is a girl. At school he plays with a mixed group I think.

Dd1 is unusual. From about age 3 she was "eugh, boys". This lasted all through infant level. In year 3 the teacher put them sitting boy/girl in class. She came home devastated. About a week later she admitted she was getting on very well with one of the boys.
When the teacher rearranged them the next term they were not together and they went together and asked to sit together again.
They were best friends in form (with other friends outside) through year 4 and some of year 5, when teasing started and since then have been "secret best friends" and go to each other's house and play together out of school, but not much in school. It is not boy/girl friendship, simply a friendship born out of common interests.

Dd2 was "we're girls and don't play with boys" (mostly due to older boys doing the opposite) through preschool and year R. Since then she has various friendships with both sexes. She's year 3.

Ds (year R) has his "fighting friends" which are all boys, but has several friends that he plays imaginative games with that are girls. His best friend through preschool was a girl.

My DD best friend is a boy, and has been for 18 months but she also has a mix of friends at nursery both boys and girls. I believe it's great for kids to mix with everyone, as were all different and if kids start making different friends from an early age all the better I say.

My DD is 4 and she seems happy with both..she has two close boy friends and two close girl ones. I really like that she plays with boys tbh as she has a much more varied choice of games...she's quite adventurous and likes to play th physical stuff that the little lads enjoy.

One of her boy friends also puts up with being "A prince" and rescues her on his little trike...like a knight in armour! She isn't fussy though and regularly "arrests" him an sticks him in jail too.

I think the lines are less clear these days and that's SO nice. Many boys now are interested in th arts...dance and drama etc so their friendships seem to go on longer than might have been once.

Yes my DS1 is very friendly with a girl. He is 19 BTW

DD1 (14) does. She was great friends with a boy a year younger from Y5 of primary. They go to different secondaries, but every time they run into each other they still disappear off they way they always did.
They aren't boy friend and girl friend just a slightly odd ball pair who get on.

DD2 (11) wouldn't be seen dead playing with the boys and won't be until she has a BF.

Ds is 3 and has always preferred girls :)

DS1 (10) has more male friends than female, but his closest friend by far is a girl :) They've been friends since they were 7.