What social skills should I teach my child to help him to make friends?

To teach your kid friendship-making skills, start by focusing on one social skill your child lacks.

Here are a few top friendship-making skills that researchers say are critical to our children's social competence. All are teachable:

Eye contact, listening to a conversation, resolving conflicts, introducing self, meeting new people, starting a conversation, joining in, handling rejection, staying calm, saying no, encouraging, asking permission, apologizing, sharing and taking turns, bouncing back, problem solving, etiquette and manners (saying thank you, please, excuse me), suggesting an activity, identifying and expressing your emotions, sticking up for yourself, expressing feelings, accepting criticism and being teased, compromising, negotiating. The list goes on, but choose the one skill your child needs.