How normal is it for 4-5yo's to kiss on the lips while playing house?

Elena - posted on 11/06/2012

My daughter is 6 years old and she kissed her friend, also a girl on the lips at school during recess. She was sent to the principal's office.

I asked her why she did that,,, and told her not to do that again as it is not right.

and she said, she is my friend and we are just playing...

I feel embarrassed with the fact that she was sent to the principal's office.

I appreciate your opinion and ideas about this.

Like Ash Sy's question, how normal is it for a child,,,let alone girl to girl kissing.

Elena - posted on 11/06/2012

My daughter is 6 years old and she kissed her friend, also a girl on the lips at school during recess. She was sent to the principal's office.

I asked her why she did that,,, and told her not to do that again as it is not right.

and she said, she is my friend and we are just playing...

I feel embarrassed with the fact that she was sent to the principal's office.

I appreciate your opinion and ideas about this.

Like Ash Sy's question, how normal is it for a child,,,let alone girl to girl kissing.

Sarah - posted on 03/23/2012

Sounds like he is role playing what he sees. I would just talk to him. Let him know that he can kiss you or dad on the lips (if that is ok), but other people he should kiss on the check. If you want to stop the kissing then you can just say why don't we give our friends hugs instead of kisses. Letting him know that sometimes some people don't like kisses from other people (just from their moms and dads). Also I think of germs that are spread, so that can be another thing you say about how (if he is sick) we don't want to get our friends sick with our cold (or whatever it might be). Another thing I try to teach is that they need to ask first before they give a hug or a kiss. This way it teaches them to respect the other person and their personal space.

Sarah - posted on 03/22/2012

My almost 4 yr son is very social and that includes being really affectionate. He has been in trouble at preschool for kissing a certain favorite girl. We just tell him to save his kisses for family, and give hugs and high fives at school. The kids all hug and snuggle each other. It's absolutely normal at this age!

Elfrieda - posted on 03/22/2012

My cousin had this happen with her daughter, and she did basically what you did, she said that hugs are for friends, not kisses.

Kay - posted on 03/21/2012

I agree with Medic Mommy. We ran into this with our neighborhood kids--there was one little girl playing in our yard with my son and another neighbor. I just reminded my son that people need personal space, but we didn't make a big deal of it. Kids play house, and my fiancé and I are pretty affectionate (not overtly, mind, but we do tend to have a peck here and there) so I wasn't surprised when it came up. ;)

Medic - posted on 03/20/2012

We kiss on the lips in our family, and that includes our close family friends and their children. I would have approached it from a personal space thing. When someone is not comfy we don't do it. I guess to me I do not think its a big deal, I peck some of my long time guy friends on the lips.

Deidre - posted on 03/20/2012

I am raising 3 boys on my own and this has not happened so far. They are 13, 6 and 4. If this happened to me I would not panic in any way. I would consider this behavior to be absolutely age appropriate.



Although, I'm pretty sure I would definitely tell my boys they are only allowed to HUG their friends. Not kiss on the lips. We , as family, do kiss on the lips. So it is entirely possible for them to kiss someone on the lips and not think twice about it, but I don't feel bad about suggesting kissing others is inappropriate until they are at least 16yrs old. Besides, the school system is so jacked up right now... When my eldest son was in Kindergarten a kid got suspended for kissing a girl. I am not trying to get caught up in some craziness like that!



I do have some pretty clear instructions while my kids play with other kids though. It all surrounds facts of accidental harm and or sexual misconduct. This topic is a sensitive area for me so I am just ULTRA OBSERVANT when it comes to it. I also find it very important to educate my children on such things so they can also be aware and be able to speak up for themselves. You did a good job with your boy and I'm sure that will be the end of it. Sometimes, we as parents have a tendency to go so much deeper than things really are, my example is case in point. LOL :)

Brittney - posted on 03/20/2012

Well, he probably sees it often and is just role playing. As to how you should handle it... just make sure that he knows when someone tells him that they don't want to be kissed, then he should stop instantly. But other than that, he's just playing and as long as both are okay, then he's fine.