Gone Fishing

This morning I went on a little fishing trip with Emma...

Me: What do you do at recess?

Em: Walk around.

Me: with who?

Em: by myself. 

(Her teacher had told me about this, so I try and monitor it.  She doesn't like to run around in crowds - she's not as agile and has no peripheral vision, so I can't blame her!)

Me: how do you feel when you are walking around by yourself?

Em: peaceful.  It's much quieter than the cafeteria - it's so loud at lunch.

Did your heart break too?  The good thing is this seems to be her choice, and if not, she has a positive outlook on it. 

I could try and push her to play with other kids all the time (she says she does play "hospital" with a few girls sometimes), but I don't want her to think that she needs to be with other kids all the time, that somehow being alone is wrong. 

Emma is not unaware that if you want other kids to play with you, you might have to follow their lead and not dictate the game yourself.  I believe she is choosing instead of following, and that is a great thing.

We have to stop assuming that social interaction needs to be the priority 24/7.  It's no wonder kids get so upset when friendships struggle, because we teach them that they need to be popular!