Be a Good Neighbor

Be a Good Neighbor How to help kids connect to their community

Neighborhoods—and connections within local communities—have never mattered more. Research shows that where children live, play and attend school impacts everything from how much they exercise to their grades. Studies also show that “social embeddedness,” or strong ties to social and cultural relationships within the neighborhood, can boost kids’ social, emotional and academic outcomes.

As families are deciding to stay closer to home, neighborhoods provide important opportunities for socialization, connection and play. Like growing a garden, cultivating a richly connected neighborhood takes time and effort, but families can reap rewards for years. Here’s how to create social connectedness in your corner of the world.

Let’s Roll (ages 0–5)

Creating a connected community starts with getting to know your neighborhood and your neighbors, says Catherine Bagwell, professor of psychology at Oxford College of Emory University. “One of the most important ways to foster relationships with neighbors is to create opportunities for children to have frequent, positive contact and interactions with them,” she says.

Often, this simply means playing outdoors, from a driveway game of hopscotch to a backyard soccer scrimmage. Help kids get to know their area by creating a scavenger hunt that includes specific neighborhood landmarks, and ask other kids on the block to participate. For a safe, socially distanced outdoor activity for little ones, create a regular weekend “Roll and Stroll” or “Wagons and Wheels” playdate to bring kids together outside.

Safe Spots (ages 6–12)

Remember long hours spent roaming your childhood neighborhood? Many adults do, but kids today don’t get nearly as much unsupervised outdoor time as their parents did, mainly due to safety concerns. When neighborhoods are viewed as less safe, kids spend more time inside, get less exercise, and are less connected to their communities, according to research. Per Bright Horizons Family Solutions, a childcare provider with locations across the country, helping kids feel safer in their community fosters a healthier, more balanced perspective to counteract the sometimes-scary world depicted by news reports.

Families concerned about neighborhood safety can establish guidelines for outdoor play (such as

checking in with parents every hour or always coming home by nightfall) and find community centers where kids can play with peers in a more supervised setting. Devices like the GizmoWatch 2 and AngelSense provide GPS tracking to give parents peace of mind while kids enjoy “free range” neighborhood play.

Grass Roots (ages 13–18)

By the teen years, kids may be too involved in school and extracurricular pursuits to spend time on unstructured, run-around-the-neighborhood play. But there are many benefits for teens to foster community connections, including (but not limited to) increasing independence, social skills and earning power.

For entrepreneurial teens, or any kids motivated by earning extra cash, a quick look around can help teens determine what type of business might flourish in their neighborhood—are there lawns in need of care? Exhausted parents who need a break from virtual learning? Professionals who travel and need pet or house-sitting?

For philanthropic teens, or those who need to fulfill volunteer hours for school, they can take the same type of “inventory” of their neighborhood—or check with their local church or town council. Are there senior citizens who need assistance with running errands? Meal deliveries needed for homebound neighbors? Local food banks that need to be restocked?

Handing out business cards or flyers around the neighborhood helps teens make face-to-face connections with people in their area. Meeting neighbors, helping people or earning money are immediate benefits, but learning about neighborhood needs and figuring out how to fill them is an exercise with long-term value.

Malia Jacobson is a nationally published journalist.

Find ideas on how to support people in your neighborhood by turning to page 22 and visiting at www.sandiegofamily.com/ things-to-do/donations-volunteers-andlocal-fundraisers.

November 2020 • SanDiegofamily.com • 21