Playdates are fun. Kids love it, parents love it. It’s a win-win situation for all. Playdates keep children occupied while parents need a break. Playdates have also been proven to be an effective way to leverage on your child’s social development by sharpening essential social skills such as negotiating and sharing at an early age.
These skills are deemed important in building a child’s self-esteem and confidence to interact and mingle with others in real-world situations. Moreover, playdates have been increasing in popularity among parents for its more traditional and authentic approach for your child to widen his/her social circle.
With proper planning and structure, playdates are able to keep for your children away from gadgets and smart devices. Parents also make use of playdates as a good opportunity to meet other parents and socialize.
Hosting playdates can be exciting and parents usually take turns to organize playdates at their homes. Although planning one for your child is hassle-free, it can get a little bit overwhelming for the host when the children get a little bit too excited where things can go so wrong, so quick.
So, here are 8 playdate rules that parents to need to understand before taking part in one:
1- Clarify any uncertainties
Before agreeing to host a playdate, ask the other parent to be completely thorough in informing you with everything that you should know about your child’s playmate. Important information such as food allergies or underlying illnesses such as asthma has to be made clear to both parties to make sure that the host knows what to look out for and what to do in case of an emergency.
Playdates should also be cancelled if either child is sick. Another responsible thing to do is to keep each other’s contact details at hand. Although playdates are also a way for parents to “take a break”, communication lines have to be kept open at all times.
2- Establish ground rules
To ensure the safety of both your child and his/her playmate, clearly lay out several rules that they have to follow. Rules such as no fighting over toys, no climbing the furniture, or no running up and down the stairs are important to make sure the playdate is carried out safely.
Talk to the other parent about these rules to make sure both of you are on the same page and have the same expectations from each other. Also, if any child misbehaves and breaks any of the rules (even if it is your child), the host should let both parties know to keep a clear string of communication with each other.
3- Always keep an eye on the children
Perhaps you would like to take the children out to the public pool during the playdate, ask the other parent to come along as this kind of activity comes with bigger risks. Even if the children are just playing with lego blocks at home, you have to be around the parameters to make sure no accidents occur.
Parents often forget that even when children are among one another, without adult supervision, things can still go wrong. If you are a parent who hosts playdates often, you may set up a play area or room specifically for playdates so the children are not playing in areas of the house where they are not allowed to be in.
It is also good to invest in a home security camera or baby monitors to be placed in the play area or room so you are able to do other tasks while watching over the children simultaneously.
4- Proper timing
To make sure the playdate goes as smoothly as planned, it is important to come up with a proper schedule to make sure everything occurs on time. Planning the schedule of the playdate can be done together with the other parents to make sure both parties are aware and well-informed of what their children are doing at certain times.
Decide on proper times for eating such as snack time or lunch. Keep it fun. Instead of letting the children play on their own, you can suggest a unique activity for the playdate such as movie time or going out to the park. Discuss with the other parent and make sure both sides are okay with the suggested activity.
5- Two-hours is enough
Playdates don’t have to be half a day long, you’re not hosting a daycare centre. The optimal time is only two-hours which should be enough for your child to have an amazing and enjoyable time with his/her friend. Longer than that and things may start to go haywire (trust me, you do not want that to be happening in your home).
6- Drop-off and pick-up times are important
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Both parents are accountable for their own children and it is an act of responsibility to acknowledge the agreed drop-off and pick-up times and be punctual.
7- Take turns hosting
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If this is your first time hosting, good for you! If you are an experienced playdate host, keep up the good work! However, if you have never offered to host but have always sent your children off for playdates, I think it’s time for you to take up the other role.
Playdates are fun, but it is also an act of social responsibility. Be a good sport and know that when you agree to participate your child in any playdate circles, you should also know that you have also agreed to host these play dates from time to time.
8- Say “Thank you” to the host
After picking up your child from a playdate, sincerely thank the host for making an effort to organize this round. Remember to offer yourself as a host for the next playdate.
You can also invite the host’s family over for brunch or organise a fun family trip together as a sincere act of friendship to ensure that both families are able to maintain a good relationship with one another.
Now that you are well-informed of all the ins and outs of playdates, you are on your way into becoming a playdate professional. So, whenever your child has playdates and asks, “What to do with friends at home?” – you know exactly what to do!
