News, Advice, and Tips for Parenting Teenagers

For generations, the sleepover has been considered a rite of passage, connecting childhood to adolescence to adulthood. But according to an Aug. 14 Associated Press article by Kelli Kennedy, a new style of parenting is changing all of that:

"In the old days, it used to be that you would build up to a sleepover and you knew everything about that family," says Stacy DeBroff, a Boston mother of two and author of four parenting books, including The Mom Book!.

"But now a more vigilant kind of hyper-concerned parent says unknown dangers may lurk," [Debroff said.] I don't know every variable ... and so I'm going to hover and basically swoop in and take you out." ...

Some parents who allow sleepovers at select homes say they talk with host parents about what food their child can eat, what they may watch on TV and even specify what time their child should be in bed.

As more stories emerge about parties, Internet predators and lack of adult supervision, an increasing number of parents are cutting short the sleepovers. Some parents feel there's no other way to protect their kids, while others consider this over-protectiveness to be more problematic than the risks these parent claim to be shielding their children from.

Labels: helicopter_parenting, sleepovers, tweens

Posted By: Aspen/CRC 0 Comments

Acronyms like IDK and OMG used to be reserved for on line chatting and cell phone text messaging. But some tweens (pre-teens) have begun using it in everyday language.

"Welcome to the age of the acronyms. It dawned in the late 1990s as Internet users began flocking to message boards... It has evolved into a spoken language among young teens and middle school students, who use acronyms to speak to their friends in shorthand..."

The trend seems to be almost exclusive to middle school students. Many high school students (especially juniors and seniors) claim that they're "so over" the acronyms and only use them to be sarcastic. Read more at HonoluluAdvertiser.com.

Labels: communication, tweens, middle_school

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

More than 90 percent of American children use the Internet before they are nine years old, according to the Tween Internet Safety Survey that was co-sponsored by Cox Communications and the Center for Missing and Exploiting Children.

By the time they are twelve, 71 of U.S. children percent have e-mail accounts, 41 percent have Instant Messaging, 50 percent have cell phones, and 33 percent have posted profiles of themselves on social networking sites such as Facebook. Of those who have such profiles, 61 percent have posted pictures of themselves and 48 percent have given false ages. Half the tweens with profiles have been contacted by strangers online compared to a quarter of all those in the survey.

Spokespeople for the Center for Missing and Exploiting Children said they were concerned about the percentages of tweens posting private information about themselves, as well as by the number who had been contacted by strangers.

Learn more: MySpace Agrees to Safeguard Teens and Kids on Its Website

Labels: internet, tweens, cell_phones

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

Preteen girls are going to beauty salons for hair coloring, permanents, and straightening, according to an article in the New York Times. Color streaks that make them look like teen idol Hannah Montana are particularly popular.

"We've had girls as young as 6 in for highlights, but 9 and 10 is more the norm," said Tammy Currin, the owner of the Toadly Kool Me in Fayette, N.C. "If it's not a relaxer, highlights are usually the first step mothers will allow. Once the girls' friends see them, they're in the next week getting streaks of their own."

Unlike most adult clients who want natural-looking highlights, the preteens prefer chunky ones in wild colors like hot pink. "It's a lucrative niche market for the industry that is beginning to be addressed at trade shows and other association events," Gordon Miller of the National Cosmetology Association told Times reporter Camille Sweeney.

Mark Goodman, the vice president of the association and owner of Hair Designers, a salon in Hilton Head Island, S.C., said that preteens make up 25% of his clients. "Five years ago, the rule of thumb was 15- to 16-year-olds would come in for their first color. Now, that girl is 10," he said.

Some people are uncomfortable with the trend. Nancy Amanda Redd, author of Body Drama, attended Harvard University and is a former Miss Virginia. She said, "These girls are going from baby to mini-adult. They feel naked without their highlights. I think we need a giant dose of realism here."

Source: New York Times

Junior boarding schools for girls offer a safe, nurturing environment for pre-teen girls. Learn about New Leaf Academy and their all girls schools.

Labels: media_infuences, tweens, role_models

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments

It's estimated that 60 percent of the tween population will have cell phones by the year 2010. A tween is defined as anyone between 8 and 12 years of age. The rising trend is due mostly to parents who view cell phones as a good way to keep track of their kids.

"Elizabeth Englander, a psychology professor at Bridgewater State College, says there can be positive and negative aspects to a child as young as 7 or 8 years old having a cell. She says it all depends on weighing a phone's pros and cons. She says there is an advantage to a younger child having a cell phone to call a parent during an emergency or to be picked up, but that kids and parents must be aware of the possible dangers."

Dangers include a child being called by someone who intends them harm, or the possibility of receiving disturbing pictures or videos on their phone. The likelihood of these things happening is minimal, and it's up to parents to decide if the benefits outweigh the potential negatives. Read more at TheSunChronicle.com.

Boarding schools for middle school girls can get a tween who's headed down the wrong path back on track. New Leaf Academy is a private girls schools with campuses in Central Oregon and North Carolina.

Labels: safety, tweens, cell_phones

Posted By: Aspen Education Group 0 Comments