Parallel Play

[Sianholby]

Hi. My daughter is 5 and in Year 1 in Primary School but her teacher has concerns about her doing “parallel play”.
I’ve looked it up and it says it is playing alongside a child and not with them. She is always telling me about who she plays with and activities they do in the playground. And when we have play dates, she is also happy playing with other children, as well as her family members.
Is this something to be concerned about as I’ve never been flagged before

No very normal

So I have nothing to be concerned about? The teacher pulled me aside as if it was serious? Is it something she will grow out of - she's always running around the park quite happily with other children playing things like hide and seek and the floor is lava?

When teachers raise concerns you should always be open to hearing their perspective. Remember that they have a whole room full of children a similar age to compare your daughter with, and have probably worked with that age group for years. They are used to evaluating different types of play and see nuances that parents might not. If she stands out from the other kids, it's worth taking note.

Also bear in mind that her behaviour at school is inevitably going to be different from home. When there's a particularly marked difference in a child's behaviour across different environments, that alone can sometimes indicate an underlying issue, such as an undiagnosed hearing problem, sensory processing problems, etc.

I definitely wouldn't panic as she is very young and it's probably nothing, but this is an important opportunity to establish an ongoing partnership with the school so I would thank the teacher for being proactive and sharing their thoughts. Even if you don't see an issue I would agree to check in next term to see if the teacher still has concerns.