Kids experience big and overwhelming feelings just like adults. They can feel frustrated, worried, excited, nervous, sad, jealous or angry. Sometimes they can feel confused about their feelings and not know what they mean or how to handle them.
Friendships are fun but they can also be complicated or hard to understand. Kids usually don’t have the vocabulary to talk about how they are feeling.
Enter “Dr. Friendtastic!”
Dr. Kennedy-Moore is the creator of the “Kids Ask Dr. Friendtastic” 
podcast where she answers questions from children about making friends, being a good friend and keeping them as special people in our lives. She also offers gentle, practical, and research-based help for parents and kids through her online courses at Open Door for Parents. Her blog, Growing Friendships on Psychology Today has over 4.9 million views.
Eileen Kennedy-Moore, PhD is an internationally published author, psychologist and mom of four. Her books for children include Moody Moody Cars and Growing Friendships: A Kids’ Guide to Making and Keeping Friends. She is also the author or co-author of four books for parents: Kid Confidence, Smart Parenting for Smart Kids, What’s My Child Thinking? and The Unwritten Rules of Friendship.
A trusted expert on parenting and child development, Dr. Kennedy-Moore has been a featured guest on Live with Kelly and Ryan, The TODAY Show, and Good Day Philadelphia as well as dozens of major radio shows and podcasts. She has been interviewed and quoted in numerous newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Real Simple, Working Mother, and CNN.com.
How did you get started writing?
My family moved about every three years when I was growing up, so I became an enthusiastic letter writer at a young age. As an adult, I’ve now written nine books. I write mostly about children’s feelings and friendships, for both kids and parents.
Some people suggest writing about what you know. I usually write about things I wonder about. I enjoy diving deeply into a topic, learning everything I can about it, and then trying to pull it all together in a way that’s interesting, useful, and entertaining to read.
Favorite author/s as a kid? Favorite book/s as a kid?
I loved From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg. The idea of running away to the Metropolitan Museum of Art intrigued me, and I liked the humor and how “real”; rather than perfect, the kids seemed.
What subjects interested you in school?
I loved school so much that I went to school for 22 years! I enjoyed all of the school subjects–except gym. I was hopeless at sports, I tend to close my eyes if a ball comes near me. Yes, I know that’s a good way to get hit by a ball. I couldn’t help it.
What’s a piece of advice/encouragement you got from a teacher or mentor?
When I was sending the manuscript of my first book to publishers, one publisher wrote back nine pages from three reviewers about how much they hated the book. They didn’t quite say, “If I saw this book lying on the ground, I’d spit on it!” but pretty close. I felt crushed, but a mentor shrugged it off and said, “People are going to have their opinions.” I was so impressed by how he wasn’t concerned about the criticism. We ended up having a small bidding war over the manuscript from our two favorite publishers. You can’t please everyone, so it’s not worth worrying about that. Just do the best work you can.
What do you read now?
In addition to books about people's feelings and relationships for my work as a psychologist, I also read a lot of books about art. I like learning about drawing and painting.
How can kids get excited about reading?
I have a very specific memory from when I was about six years old: There was a moment I realized I could read anything, which meant I could know anything! I remember feeling thrilled by that. Reading opens up the world for us to discover.
What do you think about making a movie from a book?
I’ve enjoyed lots of movies based on books, but the book always has more than can fit in a movie. If I like the characters and the story, I’m definitely going to want to read the book!
Who is someone from the past, or present time, you would like to have a conversation with?
I’d love to meet Jacinda Ardern, the former Prime Minister of New Zealand. I like that she led with her head and her heart. She cares deeply about education, healthcare, and trying to get rid of poverty, especially for children.
What was the inspiration for “Growing Friendships”?
In my work as a psychologist, I see every day how important friends are. Friends make the good times more fun and the hard times easier to get through. But almost every kid struggles with friendship in some way, at some point. Trying to find a new friend, having an argument with a friend, getting teased…these are all common situations, but they can be very painful.
Many books that supposedly teach kids about friendship are preachy and boring. My friend and co-author Christine McLaughlin and I wanted to create a book that was very practical and based on the science of friendship but also fun to read. The book is filled with cartoons showing common friendship rough spots, then the narrator gives useful tips. Plus, just for fun, wandering through the text there are these cat and dog characters who make goofy suggestions along the lines of “He should sniff their butts!”
What do you hope readers take away from your book?
Friendship skills are learned. Even adults, in new situations or new relationships, are constantly learning about getting along with others. Kindness is the key to friendship.
What’s coming up next for you?
Every week, I create a new episode of my podcast for children, called “Kids Ask Dr. Friendtastic.”
Each 5-minute episode has an audio recording of a question about friendship from a kid, plus my answer. I also have a new book coming out in July. It's a sequel to Growing Friendships, called Growing Feelings: A Kids’ Guide to Dealing With Emotions About Friends and Other Kids. Kids’ emotions often come up about friends, such as feeling anxious around friends you don’t know well, angry or hurt about something a friend did, or jealous of a friend’s other friend. The book helps kids understand, cope with, and communicate about their own and others’ feelings. And, yes, the cat and dog offer their silly suggestions!
Alice Knisley Matthias
Alice Knisley Matthias writes about food, garden, family and education. Her work appears in The New York Times, Allrecipes, Taste of Home, TIME for Kids, Food Network, Washington Post, Delish, EatingWell, The Kitchn, Family Handyman, Birds and Blooms, Woman’s Day, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, an America’s Test Kitchen cookbook, Kids Discover, Boys’ Life and Parade. Her book, “Tasty Snacks in a Snap!” is published by Scholastic for young readers. She is a regular contributor for publications covering food trends, product roundups, recipes, profiles and celebrity chef profiles. Her work includes subjects like a Master Chef Junior finalist, music and theatre kids at work, how to make food from kitchen scraps, the arts in education, the science of yeast and the birds of NYC.
