News, Advice, and Tips for Parenting Teenagers

"Having learned through experience that no teen wants her friends to think her parents are just plain crazy, I've decided to treat Adrianne to a PowerPoint presentation. It will depict all the insane things I'll do in front of her friends if she ever crosses me."

Labels: discipline, parenting_tips, technology

"Information focuses on pre-school children, primary, elementary school-aged children and teens. Certificates are awarded to participants who complete the entire 8-week session... There is no cost to participate."

Labels: advice, classes, parenting_tips

"In her book How to Parent So Children Will Learn: Strategies for Raising Happy, Achieving Children, Dr. Rimm provides practical, no-nonsense advice for addressing both the mundane tasks of living day-to-day as well as deeper issues that we may encounter while raising our progeny."

Labels: advice, books, parenting_tips

"Choose your battles. It's pretty safe to say that I disagree with many of the things my teen says and does, but if I confronted him on all the issues that are 'just not for me,' our mother-son relationship would be nonexistent."

Labels: advice, parenting_tips, teenagers

"'I think the more information you have, the better prepared you are,' said Cherish Stickel, 40, who recently attended one of the sessions at Pleasant Valley Junior High School in LeClaire. 'Power is knowledge, I think.' That need for information is especially great now, in light of recent media attention on teen pregnancy, said Libbet Brooke, one of the program facilitators and the health educator at the Edgerton Clinic in Davenport."

Labels: communication, parenting_tips, sex

"More often than not, when we complain that our teenagers won't talk to us, what we are really saying is, 'My teenager won't listen to me.' In order to make a connection with your teen, the conversation has to be two-sided with mutual respect. Wait until they've completely finished telling you something before jumping in with advice or an opinion."

Labels: communication, parenting_tips, respect

"'It's a different world now, and parents have to get used to it,' the author said in an interview. 'Kids' social life is online, now and you can't take that away from them – you have to manage it.' The book offers parents a way to do just that with simple tips such as placing computers in a common area, setting limits for time spent online and using sites like MySpace and Facebook themselves to glean a clearer understanding of what kids experience."

Labels: books, parenting_tips

"Humorist Erma Bombeck described this difficult process in terms that were helpful to me. She said the task of raising kids is rather like trying to fly a kite on a day when the wind doesn't blow. Mom and Dad run down the road pulling the cute little device at the end of a string...Then, unexpectedly, a gust of wind catches the kite and it sails upward. Mom and Dad feed out line as rapidly as they can... Then the moment of release comes..."

Labels: independence, leaving_home, parenting_tips

"One of the very best defenses against manipulation is to let your 'yes' mean 'yes' and let your 'no' mean 'no'. If you say no at first, and your teen keeps asking you and asking you over and over, and then you give in and say yes, you have taught them that your no does not mean no."

Labels: independence, manipulation, parenting_tips

"How do TV restrictions translate into healthier families? By establishing such limits, parents show their children that they care about their development and help establish certain values for their households."

Labels: parenting_tips, responsibility, role_models

"'Pick the time and place for action.'... With teens, discipline judiciously. When you make everything important, nothing is important to your teen. Chose your issues carefully, and avoid nagging and sarcastic remarks. When you need to deal with an important issue, don't impulsively react at a time of anger. Select a time when both you and your teen can talk, listen, and try to understand each other."

Labels: discipline, parenting_tips, rules

"Some of what made raising teenagers so challenging was my lack of confidence in my own judgment. Put another way, I shoulda trusted my gut... I lost sight of the fact that I knew my children better than any best-selling expert did."

Labels: advice, confidence, parenting_tips

"Parents should discuss 'what if' situations with their teens before an upcoming party, date or outing. Role-playing a potential teen situation in advance will help your child make the right choice if it should occur."

Labels: parenting_tips, risky_behavior, social_pressure

"Put Dominoes Pizza on speed-dial, and if you don't live within two blocks of a Subway, sell your house and move. Keep in mind that it means nothing if teenagers go out for a meatball sub at 4 p.m.; they will still want dinner at 6. I recommend buying frozen hot-pockets and chip bags large enough to feed livestock..."

Labels: advice, parenting_tips, support

"'My parenting ideas as a counselor have changed,' Smith said. 'I'm going to have to live it - practice what I preach.'... Smith says life requires more than the tough parenting and marriage skills she dissects with others. It requires humor and faith."

Labels: communication, counseling, parenting_tips

"Parents.tv will cull content from Meredith's 'Parents', 'American Baby', 'Family Circle' and 'Child' titles, focusing on subjects ranging from pregnancy to raising older teens. The site will feature community tools, branded content, resources and e-commerce..."

Labels: advice, parenting_tips, resources

"Oldest daughter Melissa sometimes cried or yelled during disagreements, saying things that hurt Cox's feelings. Second child Nick was quieter and began spreading his wings earlier than his sister had. Matt came next and often liked to say things simply for shock value."

Labels: mothers, parenting_styles, parenting_tips

"1. Law of Belonging: The greatest need of teenagers (after music and the phone) is a strong sense of belonging. They need to feel they are a part of something bigger than themselves. If they don’t get it in a healthy place - with family, worthwhile friends, clubs, sports, youth groups, etc. - they will get it in an unhealthy place - with inappropriate friends, drugs, gangs, or cults."

Labels: guidance, parenting_tips, support

"The hands-on approach helps parents understand their developing adolescent. This book is aimed for parents with teens in grades 6 - 11, and is approved by the National Middle School Association."

Labels: parenting_books, parenting_tips, teenagers