How to make friends for DD outside of school

[GaroTheMushroom]

How can I make my daughter some friends outside of school? I don’t have any friends with children her age, she has siblings but they don’t want to play with her and we live on a road with no other children. Whilst she has friends in school it’s not extended outside of school and I would specifically like to find friends for her away from just school friends anyway. Has anyone used apps like peanut etc for older kids? Heard they are mainly aimed at new mums or pregnant mums so has anyone got experience using them with older kids?

Couldn’t you sign her up for some classes somewhere? We’ve started doing a circus skills class the next town over and met a whole new bunch of people. They chat on Roblox do distance I’d not the issue it was when I was young.

A hobby group maybe,

Dance classes.
Brownies
Etc

How old is she?

Sign her up to extracurriculars.

How old is she? What are her interests?

I’d say things like Brownies/sports club/dance class/drama class?

How old is she OP and does she do any activities outside of school?

Sign her up for some classes and let her make friends that way. Brownies is a good one because there's lots of space for friendship or a team sport or drama/music. Things like swimming are less good for making friends.

My child started an extra curricular class in 2011. She still attends and some of her closest friends are those made at the club.

There are lots of advantages to having a set of friends you don't go to school with!

She’s 6 and doesn’t do any clubs at the moment, I guess I was thinking clubs may be the same as school where she makes friends but it doesn’t extend out of them? She has siblings but they never want to play with her so that’s what it’s for really so can have play dates etc

How old are her siblings?

My dd does brownies and none of the girls in her pack/unit are in her class or year at school, some of the older girls are from the same school though. It’s been brilliant for helping her develop confidence and friendship outside school.

Clubs would be the useful route to find kids with similar interests and get to know them

I guess I was thinking clubs may be the same as school where she makes friends but it doesn’t extend out of them?

You don't know until you try though? And anyway even if the friends don't want to meet up out of school she'll have fun and it will help to develop her social skills further.

I'd look at Beavers and maybe sign her up for AllStars Cricket at Easter. It's a great short cricket course where they basically have fun all running around and playing games in the sunshine

Having friends from clubs or at least knowing some other children is useful too when they go to High School.

Why don't you invite some of her school friends over for a play date? And enrol her in some clubs like dance etc. Girls football seems to have quite an active social life alongside the actual football as well.

DD has clubs where you drop and crucially they have a break of activities so in the break they play. Hers is drama, but could be beavers/cubs or sports.

My DCs (7 & 9yo) swim with a club and each have a good set of 'swim friends' as a result. They spend so much time together anyway (galas, training and chatting in the showers afterwards mostly, but also fun team bonding trips out, swim week and various socials) that extra playdates feel unnecessary.
I imagine it would be the same for any club sport that has long training/competing hours.

Sign up for Brownies now as she can't start til 7.

Alternatively dancing, swimming, gymnastics are all popular out of school activities with my daughter and her friends who are 6.

I want the play dates as she wants someone to play with at home with her toys as she has no one to do that with, seems pointless buying her loads of dolls and toys as they never get played with as she has no one to play with them with, I play occasionally but sometimes I’m busy or have thing to do so can’t always do that and I know she would prefer a child her own age to play with her toys with her.

You need to find out who she plays with at school from her teacher then ask the parent for a play date? You say she has friends at school so there must be a few people you can ask?

I would rather make friends outside of school.

Clubs is the way to go- beavers is a good one, lots of varied activities.

A team sport would be a good opportunity to make friends.

Football?
Netball?

DS's football team go to different schools but are good friends- they do things like meet ups in the park, trampolining etc outside of playing football.

You can't make friends for her.

You can facilitate her meeting more people by signing her up to Rainbows / swimming / Beavers / Dance / Football / whatever but, from your posts, it seems there is more of an issue about her social skills or play skills ?

Why doesn't she ever play with her siblings ?
Why don't any of her friendship from school extend to seeing them sometimes at home ?

Have you got a local mums facebook group you could post on ask if any similar aged kids are up for a playdate? Otherwise as PPs say, some kind of extra curricular club or school. Is there a reason you don't want to plan playdates with school friends? I like my DD to have outside of school friends and she has a small number (mainly from me getting on with their mums) but she still has playdates with school friends.

Sorry she does play with them just not what she wants to play they are boys 9 and 11 and won’t play with dolls and babies they do play but not much or with the stuff she wants to play with. No she doesn’t have issues with social skills she plays with them but they want to play football or gaming she doesn’t. That’s all no deeper meaning.