Seventh grade son friendship question

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lots of boys are like this. My son has a strong group of neighborhood friends but none that attend his school. He sees them every weekend.
Then he hangs out with school classmates before and after school but never on the weekends. He seem perfectly happy with this (9th grader). I think it's weird but I can't force him to change his ways. He says "I see my school friends in school, mom".

I was the same as a girl. It's fine. It's the only way he can keep both friend groups going strong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if our sons are in the same school because you are describing my son and he's also in the 7th grade. It's sad to me but I guess it's part of their maturity.

What’s sad about it? It takes a lot of energy for kids to be social at school and busy with sports and extracurricular after school (which are also social.) Even our extroverted DD(13) dials it back much of the rest of the time.

I’m just grateful my kid is self-regulating rather than exhausting herself of falling into the FOMO trap. Middle school friendships are often very in-the-moment and based on companionship while doing other things (a sport, sitting together in a particular class.) The deeper parts of friendship will come later.

This. School and sports is more than enough socializing for most introverts. That is a lot of time with other people.