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I think there are two problems here: Your child is friends with a kid who has learned some maladaptive behaviors/ideas and is passing them on to your child. You and your wife are apparently unaware of the social and cultural realities outside your own family. This isn't to say that you can fix the situation, but you'd have a better chance of doing so if ...

As I get older, I have come to believe deeply in the idea that who you are friends with, and who you choose to associate with, profoundly influences your behavior. If you hang around with hoodlums, you are more likely to become a criminal. That however is just my opinion. I did find one study about smoking that corroborates this, at least in that one single ...

Depending on their age, you may be able to use this to teach them about finances. Not everyone is paid the same. Not everyone has the same expenses. Also, you might give them an opportunity to earn a little more: Small payments for special housework (they still have chores that don't count here) Other jobs (selling candy/soda/etc. at a garage sale; odd ...

Talk to your son. An 8 year old is mature enough to understand a lot of what is going on here and choose for himself. What he needs is your guidance & wisdom. My wife and I have no TV, we disallow violent games (simulated killing is not allowed), we don't have video games, we teaching proper custodianship of the earth, respecting other people, ...

In general, older kids will be viewed as cooler kids, probably because they have more freedoms and do more complex/rewarding things. Because of this, the younger children will emulate them, for better or worse. If you think that these older kids are someone you want your children to look up to, then its good to have your children interact with them. If they ...

My seven year-old has cerebral palsy, so I've been on the other side of the coin. Mostly what I remember about those difficult first few months was that a lot of people started thinking they had to either make grand gestures or none at all. They planned special birthday parties for us in the hospital, just for us, but then didn't invite us to their ...

I don't know what you mean by going to time out but it almost sounds like you're trying to force the child to be participating and being social from the start. Give the child time to adapt to the newcomers. Don't expect the child to be social and friendly immediately -- allow a number of minutes to get used to the situation. Let the child play in his ...

We always talk about the people coming (important distinction from just telling them about them) - so we remember the last time they were there, perhaps some news about them, what we're going to do, if they're another child then we might talk about what toy to share. Basically it's about setting her up to ask questions or show something off to the new ...

In addition to the answers already given, I would also point out those who are not as fortunate as you or the richer families. Depending on the age of your child, it may be a good time to discuss community service. Take your child to a food bank or get involved in other activities where your child can experience both sides of the coin.

Just be there. Share their pain. Don't run away. Love them and their children. This is a tragic situation, and they need people around them. They don't need to feel isolated, and people are going to shy away. Don't do so yourself. With limited info at my disposal, the most obvious thing I can suggest for practical help is to offer to watch the other ...

All I can say is; while I understand your deep feelings of concern - you have to be realistic - you cannot shield your child from the realities of society forever. You could keep him locked in a bubble till he leaves home - but then I'm afraid when that day comes the world will eat him alive. So by all means disapprove of the other family; by all means do ...

There are some good answers, but I wanted to speak up a little for us introverts to provide some counterpoint. There's a big difference between being able to get along with new people and liking to meet new people. As hard as it is for extroverts to believe, introverts are more comfortable alone. When we want to unwind, we seek solitude rather than a ...

Keep it simple, keep it short, keep it contained. Simple: I would go with one or two games, with one more as a back-up. The kids may want to do more free-play than you thought, especially if the weather is nice. Keep the food you serve simple. Variety often leads to chaos. You don't want a fistfight over the only green cupcake. Short: These kids are ...

I always do my parties at home. I've been doing them since my oldest turned 3. She is now 8 and I have added 3 more kids to the mix, so you may consider me an expert. I find games like 'Mr. Fox, Mr. Fox, what time is it", 'Red light, Green light' are great games, however they can't last very long (5-8min.) due to the potential of cheating after some ...

Fun: Not all people are fun. But the more people you meet, the more fun people you will meet, and the more fun you will have, and it will be easier to avoid the people who are not fun. Growing: Great people usually comes in groups. I once saw a documentary about British punk. They talked about a group of kids (several from the from the same suburb in ...

Making friends is important because: The world is full of people, so there's no chance that you never have to interact with anyone. Things are easier to accomplish if others help you because they can help you solve problems and think up new ideas. It's more fun to do things together because you have someone you can share the joys and triumphs with. ...

Ask them; they know what they need or what isn't helpful. Try and offer specific help. "Come over next week for a cup of tea" or "let's organise a playdate" (when that's appropriate). Offer to go to support groups with them - although "Alfi's Syndrome" is quite rare, so there might not be any in your area.

Your friends are facing the process of grieving the loss of their "normal" child and their expectations of the future. Understanding the 5 stages of grief will prepare you to walk through this process with them and assist them on their path to acceptance. Know that in the denial and isolation stage they may withdraw socially. Unrealistic anger at ...

Besides the other answers of being a solid friend, you can also read up on what it is, only so that you know when your friends want to talk about it. A quick Google search turned up several useful sources including a support group and a short WebMD page with more support addresses. Sadly, the Wikipedia entry is very brief.

Rich dad poor dad is by far the best resource that you can use for this. Give your child this very simple parable: "Every morning an elderly man goes for a run. He looks to be in great shape and always has the energy. During his run, this old mans grandson can be found at home watching television. This grandson is overweight and never has the energy to run ...

You may arrange a divorce in this situation and that might be helpful locally. But that is not a global solution. Basically, as he grows older and older, you can control less and less other people's influence on your kid. You have to teach him how to protect himself from negative influence, how to stay clear of trouble. How you do it? you treat him ...

Well, I like to play Rock Band. And I can tell you that Rock Band is a lot more fun when I play it with some friends than when I play it alone. I'm sure the same basic advice goes for many kinds of games -- board games, card games, hide and go seek.. etcetera. It's just more fun to play with friends, isn't it?

I'm against the whole concept of just giving kids money. But if you are going to give it to him, I would respond to his complaints by having a discussion about fairness and equality and that they are not necessarily the same thing. Other topics for discussion would be: whether his friends do anything to earn their money, what trade-offs are associated with ...

Children should be allowed to spend time with lots of kids from a variety of age groups as it helps to give them a more well-rounded sense of social skills. Different ages have different expectations. The interactions between kids change as their age differential does also. As long as the older kids are setting a good example and being kind to your little ...

Why not just speak directly with the son about what he likes and doesn't like about this young man? It sounds like he is getting some help (counselors etc) even if it isn't making enough of a difference yet to make fixee comfortable with the boy, calling the authorities is probably an over-reaction based on other information that has been added and given. ...

While I'm apt to agree with @puddingfox on the 'typical' tag and the almost extreme control over experiences, I understand where you're coming from, and your concern for your child is of course well founded. Your son is eight years old, not in his teens...he's not about to hold grudges over something so trivial. What matters right now is the support of your ...

I would like to share how our parents raise us. When it comes to money matters, my mom is very transparent or vocal about our financial condition. Like she tell us that this is what we have, and we will have to spend it on this and that. In this way, I learned the value of money. Based from experience, my parent's honesty about our financial status, had ...