Good friends provide us with support from childhood through adulthood. It takes practice to learn how to be a good friend — practice at being kind, supportive, trustworthy, and a good listener. Help children draw the connection between their kind, cooperative behavior and friendship. For young children, this might sound like, "Can you share your blocks with your friends? It's nice to share with friends" or "You gave your friend a hug when she was crying! That helped her feel better." As the “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” song reminds us: "Friends help each other. Yes they do, it's true."
Find More Ways to Play!
- Watch PBS KIDS shows on the PBS KIDS Video app.
- Play games on friendship on the PBS KIDS website.
- Download and print activities about being a good friend for PreK-K and grades 1-2.
PBS KIDS Podcasts
Listen together as a family with your favorite PBS KIDS characters with these new podcasts!
Friendship Activities
Make a Silly Folded Picture
15 min activityPractice cooperation skills by working and playing with others to create a silly drawing.
Simple Teamwork Games
30 min activityTry these four games to help children practice cooperation and working together.
3 Ways to Practice Being a Good Sport
Help your child learn about being a good sport by talking about the feelings behind winning and losing.
Make a Book About Friends
30 min activityHelp children learn to listen to each other and continue to play despite conflict.
Friendship Cards
Talk to your child about friendship and what makes a good friend.
Help Your Child Plan for a Grr-ific Visit With a Friend
20 min activityBrainstorm ideas with your child and help them learn how to have a friend choose what they do. One idea they can suggest is making snowflakes together!
Traits of a Good Friend
What are the traits of a good friend?
Practice Friendship Skills by Building a Family Fort
30 min activitySpend family time in a homemade fort and talk about ways you can practice being great friends to one another.
Kindness Bingo
Play this game of Kind Acts Bingo to celebrate kindness this month!
Sharing Games
My Turn! A Simple Game About Taking Turns
Playing this game can help children practice waiting while the other player(s) take their turn.
Play Pretend: Practice Including Others
Using imaginary play, you can help your child work through the disappointment of being excluded — and learn to include others!
Games That Teach Sharing
Help your child develop the ability and willingness to share with these fun group games.
Molly’s Barter and Trade Challenge Game
25 min activityCapture the tradition of bartering and trading as you try to get the best supplies to complete a building challenge.
Daniel Shares His Tigertastic Car
Help Daniel learn to share and take turns.
Giving a Helping Hand
Make a Coupon Book to Give As a Gift
20 min activityEncourage your child to perform acts of kindness by creating a coupon book to show they care.
Chore Ideas for Kids Ages 2 to 8
Everyone benefits when kids engage in household chores! Here are some tips (and a printable list!) for tackling chores with kids.
Make Your Own Thank You Cards
15 min activityMaking a homemade card is one way your child can say thank you to a friend, relative, or teacher.
Choosing Chores: Everyone Can Be a Helper
15 min activityChildren can be helpers too! Talk about ways that your child can help around the house and create a weekly chore chart for your family.
Neighbor Day
Daniel Tiger and his friends are celebrating Neighbor Day! In this game, your child can ride along on Trolley and help each neighbor complete tasks such as gathering flowers, blowing up balloons, and cleaning picnic tables.
Classroom Helpers
In this game, your child can be a helper along with Daniel's classmates by caring for the class pet, watering the class plant, and cleaning up and organizing the classroom toys, art center, and cubbies.
Read More
Help Your Child Be a Kind Friend
We all want to raise kids who are kind and inclusive. That takes practice. Try these strategies to teach your child to be a good friend.
Encouraging Children to Share and Take Turns
Learning to share can be a challenge for young children. Here are a few tips for helping children become comfortable taking turns and sharing.
Three Ways to Help Your Child Build Better Friendships
From modeling friendship to helping children to understand how to invite and include others, parents play an essential role in helping children to build relationships with others.
15 Children's Books About Friendship
In honor of the International Day of Friendship on July 30, here are 15 books that can help us start conversations with our kids about what it means to be a friend.
5 Ways to Help Kids Handle Disagreements With Friends
“Can two friends disagree?” asks Donkey Hodie. Yes, friends can disagree, and they often do! Here are some ways to help your child understand that conflict is normal, and provide them with tools to handle disagreements when they arise.
Helping Children With Sharing
Sharing is hard for most children. That doesn’t mean they are selfish. It just means that it takes a long while to be able to share.