Having a playdate can help your child gain sociability and interact with other children (apart from just being in a classroom on a weekly basis), and to also help you as a parent spend time with other parents.
Making observations and listening closely to your child is a cue that he/she is now ready for a playdate. But before setting one up, it's also good to choose the parent/s you would like to spend time with. It wouldn't work out too well if your child enjoys his/her friend's company when you are secretly hoping that the day would end fast!
Do take note that having a playmate doesn't exactly have to be of same age range. Pairing children of different ages will also have its advantages and of course, disadvantages, so whatever works best for your child.
A small group consisting of one to two friends and having simple playtime can sometimes be better for your child, to remain focused instead of leaving anyone out of place. Some parents who I spoke with even shared that they would choose to limit to one playmate at a time for sharing toys, against a lot of children that can sometimes become an issue.
Always watch the time when you set a playdate. Note that two whole hours is a lot for young children, including snack-time for half an hour max. Any longer than this, you will end the day with tired and cranky children and we certainly don't want that, do we?
No playdate is complete without a small snack. Some parents have particular diets for their children, so never forget to always ask before you feed them anything. On the other hand, the guest is also responsible for letting their host know in advance if their child is allergic or sensitive to any type of food. It works vice-versa.
On the day, it might be sensible to hide your child's favourite toys to avoid anything special to him/her getting damaged by accident. It would be a good idea to put out toys that your child won't particularly mind sharing with a friend. But best of all, we should always teach our little ones to share with others and of course have good manners to avoid having social problems in the future. Every house has different rules so never forget to remind your child to be on his/her best behaviour.
Having some quiet time might be helpful for your child and his/her friend. This can involve reading books and drawing/painting. Meditation would also be good, but might be highly impossible with toddlers, but you still might want to try and surprise yourself with the results. Playdates don't always have to be noisy and chaotic! Hitting, kicking and making faces are definitely a NO!
Putting the toys and things away is a very good practice. And please, let the children do it - no parents or nannies involved! I think that it is highly important that no one else should look after the mess. It is part of having good manners, part of growing up and learning to look after themselves and having playdate etiquette, as well.
The parent host should always be present. During playdates, it is the mommy or daddy host's responsibility to look after the children when sorting things out is needed. Yes, it is your role to ensure that the children play nicely, without physically hurting anyone and for you to also do the talking if a fight comes about.
Encouragement and acknowledging good behaviour is very helpful during a playdate. It makes children happy and would certainly want them to come back again at another time to play. But before leaving to say goodbye, let your child's friend take home some items for a souvenir such as drawings they made or snacks they ate. Children would love to share this memory with others at home. And don't forget to take some photos as well, which is an even more lasting memory.
It's true that no child can ever be alone without ever having anyone to play with. A child's work is play so go and book a playdate now!