By Jade, Kai, and East Norriton Bulldog Bulletin staff | Good friends are actually good for your health.
Good friends can increase your sense of belonging and purpose, along with boosting your happiness and reducing your stress, according to the Mayo Clinic, a large, national health organization. Mayo also says friends also help increase your self-confidence and boost your self-worth.
However, it isn’t always easy to maintain friendships. Some East Norriton staff talked to the Bulldog Bulletin about the importance of friendships and how to keep those friendships.
“Friends are everything, your close friends and your circle,” said fifth- and sixth-grade counselor Mrs. Bussell. “If you need them, they’re there.”
Ms. Albert, a fifth-grade English Language Arts teacher, agrees. “I think it is extremely important to have friends, that’s why I think it is so important to have so many clubs in middle school,” she said.
Mr. Toner, a sixth-grade science and social studies teacher, said the pandemic didn’t help friendships. “I think coming back from Covid has made it harder for students,” said Mr. Toner. “It is very important to have
friends. It is important because I rely on my friends and they rely on me.” When there is a problem between friends, Vice Principal Dr. Harper explained how she helps.
“I always try to listen to both sides to talk with them separately,” she said. “Sometimes I have them write down what happened if I’m busy, after I talk to them separately I bring them both together to talk.”.
She also said talking isn’t always successful. “There are times when the mediation works and they walk out friendly. … One thing I say to students more now is to stay kind, even if you’re not friends anymore.”
Mrs. Hoag, a seventh-grade English Language Arts teacher, also talked about how she handles problems with friends.
“First, we have the students get away from each other to get some time away,” she said. “We try to talk to them separately and we try to fix whatever the problem is. If we don’t have time to mediate, we send them to the counselors.”
Friendship certainly has its ups and downs, but is so important in life. Ms. Devlin, an eighth-grade English Language Arts teacher, said it isn’t about the number of friends a person has.
“I believe in quality over quantity,” Ms. Devlin said. “I would rather have [a few] good friends than many friends.”
Illustration by Bulldog Bulletin staff.
