Issue 4
Feb. 2015
Now that it's 'Friendship February," it's also
time for
a list
of those
Jump rope
Card games (Go
Tag (frozen, cartoon)
fish,
Crazy8's,War,
Slap jack,
Red Rover
Rummy, Garbage,
Kings in the
Capture the Flag
corner, Double
Hide 'n Seek
solitaire)
activities
that would be
Board games
Simon Says
fun to play with a friend
4-square
orColoring/activi
friends, either
Hopscotch
indoors
or out!
ty
books
Golf
Arts & crafts
Kickball
Red light, green light projects
Outdoor:
Soccer, baseball, and
other sports
Frisbee
Sidewalk chalk
Indoor:
The
The Elementary
Elementary Quarterly
Quarterly
School Newsletter
AAQuarterly
QuarterlyNewsletter
Newsletterfor
forFamilies
Familiesfrom
fromyour
yourSchool
SchoolAdjustment
AdjustmentCounselor
Counselor
Friendship Do’s and Don’ts
Do’s:
*Be Friendly
*Ask questions
*Appreciate Difference
*Show you care
*Listen
*Be Trustworthy
*Solve problems together
*Take Turns
*Share
Don’ts:
*Only talk about
yourself
*Talk about your friend
to other people
*Think your friend can’t
have other friends too
*Pressure your friend
onto doing something
they don’t want to do
That’s What Friends Are For
The Importance of Friendship Skills for Elementary School Children
You have most probably heard the term “social skills” in relation to your child’s elementary school
development. For those of us over 40, this skill set may be one that our parents and teachers took for
granted, assuming that we would learn what we needed to learn about friendship and getting along on the
playground, in the neighborhood and just “around”. Today, our children are far more technically
sophisticated than most of us but, their development of social skills is no longer something that can be
taken for granted. Recess is far shorter than in previous generations if it happens at all. Playing outside is
often an adult supervised activity, organized ahead of time and hardly ever open-ended. For safety
reasons, children hardly ever leave the house on a Saturday morning, returning before dinner, dirty and
flushed with stories of riding bikes and playing at the park.
According to Joyce E.A. Russell, writer for The Washington Post, “In today’s highly competitive world, it
is often the softer skills that differentiate applicants, and determine who will get hired, who will be
successful and who will move up in the organization”. Those “soft skills” are the character development
and social skills training that teachers, counselors and parents must focus on if we hope to raise
compassionate children who value relationships and their reputation as much as technical skills.
These skills include:
1. Integrity-ethical and honest.
2. Work ethic-dependability and hardworking.
3. Team player-collaboration and working well with others.
4. Positive attitude and enthusiasm.
5. Adaptability and flexibility.