As your child plays with his friend, he also gets a sense of what his friend is good at. For instance, if both of them are playing basketball and your child’s friend, ‘Jay’, makes more baskets, you will hear your child say, “Jay played well.”
However, if he says, “I did not play as well as Jay,” this talk needs to be checked. Your child is comparing his performance with his friend's and may feel disappointed. You can say, “So Jay played better. He must have practiced. You know, you too play very well. Try giving your best shot next time.”
What you need to know
Your child recognizes his friend’s strengths by observing him. That’s a great quality. However, keep a check on him to not get into self-other comparisons. This can affect his self-esteem. Rather work on self-self comparison. Doing better than before through practice, consistency and efforts.
