Only insecure people actually worry about seeming socially awkward. Seriously, what's with this thread? Asking is not a problem at all. It's literally a normal social interaction. You ask people stuff you wanna know. The issue here is just for him to get a feel of how to ask those things the right way.

I feel like the reason you all are socially awkward is because you're literally trying to guess "oh if I do this they'll think I'm this way", "oh, if I do that they'll think I'm insecure". That's not the point at all. Having social skills is not trying to please people and control how everyone thinks about you. It has much more to do with being comfortable being who you are and picking up social cues.