Making Friends

Question:

Hello Mrs. Naylor,I love your Alice books and I would like to ask you a question.I am 14 years old and have been going to a small Christian school since 4th grade that I have recently graduated from.The kids in my graduating class were like family to me and they’re all headed off in different directions.So,I’m going to a new school next year and it’s a lot bigger than my old school.I won’t know anyone there except my sister.What do I do and how can I adjust and make new friends when my old ones are all in different schools?And how do I stay connected with my old friends?

Phyllis replied:

You’ll make friends the same way other kids to that school made friends, the way you made friends in your old school. You smile and say “Hi” to people in the hall. When you walk into a new classroom, you choose someone who is sitting alone and sit beside her, ask her name, tell her yours. You aren’t afraid to make friends with kids who aren’t running with the most popular crowd. And most important of all, you join a club, a group, a team, an activity that you enjoy, something where everyone is doing a project together, or learning a song, or playing an instrument, or putting on a play. I’ve said this many times but I’ll say it again: the very best way to make friends is to join an activity where the activity itself is the main topic, not making friends. This way you start getting to know people automatically, without the awkwardness that comes with being somewhere just because you need a friend.

Posted on: June 28, 2010