Fun Way to Teach Your Kids About Friendship

Friends are a huge influence in the lives of many children and teens. You can’t just assume your kids know how to choose close friends who will support and encourage them. Nor can you assume your children will automatically know how to be a good friend to others. It’s important to have regular conversations about friendship. Fortunately, there are some fun things you can do with your kids while having these conversations.

Find a recipe you want to teach your kids how to make. It can be for one of their favorite dishes or something fun like cookies. Take the time to show them the recipe and talk about the importance of following it well if you want the food to turn out great. Talk about what would happen if you put a cup of salt instead of a cup of sugar in your cookie recipe or didn’t follow the recipe in other ways.

While your recipe is cooking, read or tell your kids the story of David and Jonathan found in 1 Samuel 20. Ask your kids to point out the clues in the story that Jonathan and David were good friends to each other. How did they support and encourage one another?

Give your kids some blank paper and pens, crayons or markers. Explain that just like your recipe, there is a recipe for what makes a great close friend. (For some children, you may want to explain the differences between acquaintances, casual friends and close friends.) Give them time to create and illustrate their “recipe” for a great friend. After they have finished, discuss their answers. What else should they add? What things would be nice, but aren’t essential? Why are the best friends sometimes different from us in key areas? Which of these characteristics do they see in their current friends? If they don’t have close friends, where might they begin trying to find them? What are some good ways to make new friends?

Like many other conversations about important topics, you will have to revisit friendship multiple times over the years. If not, you may find your kids are choosing friends who are gradually pulling them away from God.

Published by

Thereasa Winnett

Thereasa Winnett is the founder of Teach One Reach One and blogger at Parenting Like Hannah. She holds a BA in education from the College of William and Mary. She has served in all areas of ministry to children and teens for more than thirty years and regularly leads workshops for ministries and churches. She has conducted numerous workshops, including sessions at Points of Light’s National Conference on Volunteering and Service, the National Urban Ministry Conference, Pepperdine Bible Lectures, and Lipscomb’s Summer Celebration. Thereasa lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband Greg, where she enjoys reading, knitting, traveling and cooking.

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