My daughter is new to school and hasn't made friends...

Question from a parent of an 11 year old

Question

So my daughter has just started high school and so far hasn’t made any close friends. She told me she’s feeling really lonely. Is there any advice I can give her?

Answer

It's really tough to see a child feeling so lonely, but it's great that she has you to support her and has opened up to you about this.

Starting high school / secondary school can be a huge transition, and in reality it just can take time to find the right group of friends. It'll be worth the wait though as it means she'll find the right people!

Here are some tips you can share with her:

• Join clubs or activities: encourage her to join clubs or extracurricular activities that interest her – this is a great way to meet people with similar interests and make new friends
• Be approachable: smiling and making eye contact can make her seem more approachable – sometimes, a friendly gesture can be the start of a new friendship for example offering to help in class or complimenting someone
• Start small conversations: encourage her to ask her classmates about their hobbies, favourite subjects, or weekend plans – people often appreciate when someone shows interest in them
• Be patient: remind her that making close friends takes time – it's okay if she doesn't find her close friends right away!

It's also important for her to know that feeling lonely sometimes is normal and that she's not alone in this experience. Encourage her to keep trying and to be kind to herself during this transition. In time it will work out, and there are lots of people in the same boat as her.

luna's got a lot of advice on how to help teens make friends in luna's app if you want to recommend it to her (it's "we are luna" in app stores) and you can find a piece on how to help your teen make friends for parents, on our website, as well.

Really hope this has helped, and thank you for coming to luna with your question!

Are you a parent in need of support? Ask luna using this form and our experts will pick 4 to address in our newsletter – which you can sign up to here or by scrolling down.