Vampirina guide to help children make friends

Making friends is a top concern for children starting school, but Disney Junior's 'Vampirina' is looking to help.

Research from the show's team has revealed that over two-thirds of parents and guardians are nervous about their kids starting school.

Amongst the top-five concerns for parents are settling in, making friends, going to the toilet, liking their teacher and misbehaving.

As a result, Disney Junior has teamed up with parents, children and psychologist Linda Blair to create the 'How to Make Friends and Influence... Five-Year-Olds' video guide.

The clip - which also comes in written form - aims to battle the issue, with Linda admitting the tips can help kids who need the support.

She said: "To make friends children must be able to consider life from other people's points of view so they can appreciate and react to what others want to do and enjoy. Although young children show they're capable of appreciating other viewpoints, they don't normally apply this skill until they're about five years old.

"This is why it's important to start introducing them to this skill at a young age. Once they can understand empathy it will feel like second nature to them to behave in those adaptive ways.

"Together with Disney Junior, we have developed tips on how you can empower your child and help them develop empathy to increase their ability to make friends."

David Levine, the general manager at Disney Channels UK & Ireland, added: "Disney Junior's 'Vampirina' is a show about making new friends so we're delighted to lend our characters to help both children and parents settle into school in what is an exciting, but often anxious time, for all involved.

"It's fantastic that TV shows such as 'Vampirina' can spark conversations around everyday problems that ordinarily may be difficult for parents and children, and in turn offer support by showing solutions."

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