Sometimes when I ask dd who she played with at school she says "my shadow" and I feel so sad. Sometimes she plays with a few children from her class but quite often she plays with older children and it seems she is taking the role of little sister eg . they pick her up etc.
She had a special friend when she was at nursery who has gone to a different school and we have lost touch with - I know she misses this little girl but she was very dependant on her .
What I really am asking is should I help her make friends? and if so how? I feel that all the little girls in her class have already paired up or she says she doesn't like them/or they won't play with her.
I have looked into her joining Rainbows(pre brownies) but the nearby group has a waiting list and I can't realistically get to another one and back on foot easily . Dh works evenings and I would have to take ds along.
Sometimes I worry that she is young and sometimes shy for her age and that because she was an only child until recently she does not take turns etc. very well(I feel this is something I should have helped her with more). If I play with her it usually involves her trying telling me what to do , obviously I have explained that it is better if we take turns and listen to each other , but it usually end up with her stomping off. She did something like this when she was playing with her granny on Sunday . She came out the kitchen to me to complain. She is a happy bright imaginative child but I worry that if she isn't making friends now it will have longterm effects. Btw dd is 5. We did go to toddler groups and I do take her to the park and storytime at the library but I feel I should be doing more.