Friends are important for youngsters' mental and physical wellbeing. Stress born of social isolation and peer conflict suppresses the immune system and increases vulnerability to illness and depression.

For your child to master the art of getting along with others, making friends, and maintaining healthy relationships, you will need to teach a number of essential social skills.

Unfortunately, many children with ADHD symptoms have poor social skills because they do not tune in to the subtleties of social interactions or misread social cues. They benefit from reminders to pay attention, and they can often be more objective when watching how peers interact with one another.

Importance of Maturity Level

For children to get along with one another, maturity level is more important than age. If your youngster's social skills are very poor, she may have fewer conflicts and more in common with younger children.

And since older children tend to make allowances for younger ones, they are often more tolerant of immature behavior. Hence, your child may do better with playmates that are younger or older than with people her own age.