How To Reconnect With a Teenager

Communicating With Teens

Jul 22, 2009 Marcelle Greene Edins

For both parents and children the teen years can be trying times. Here are a few simple activities that may help parents and teens get to know each other again.

Painful braces, peer pressure, and making good grades are just a few of the sources of stress teenagers deal with on a daily basis. Combine those factors with battling skin blemishes, and the occasional fashion crisis all played out in hallways filled with judgmental, gossipy teens, and the result will certainly be one frazzled individual.

The safest environment a child of any age has is his home. As such, it is important to remember just how critical a good, healthy dose of parental involvement is to a teen as well as to younger children.

At times, most parents wonder where they fit into the lives of their busy teens. Well, believe or not, most teens wonder the exact same thing about their parents. Once high school days are in full swing, teens don't want to be babied anymore though certainly, at times, that extra bit of supervision is called for. Also, many parents find themselves uncertain of just how to spend quality time with their teenage kids.

Teens want the adults in their lives to grow to appreciate them for the young adults they are becoming. It would likely surprise many adults if young people were given the chance to show just how much they know and what they have to say about big issues. Teenagers may even be able to teach adults a thing or two. Here are some suggestions that may help break the ice with that special teen.

Embark on an Adventure

Teens are always willing to try something new and one sure way to get folks talking is to take off on an adventure. Try something together for the first time. Try a new restaurant or even a new type of cuisine at home. Take off together on an unexpected day trip to the lake or visit a theme park and take a ride with him or her on that roller coaster looming in the distance.

Laughter is the Best Medicine

All teenagers like having a good laugh, and it means more than parents may think for their children to see them lighten up a bit. Kids secretly love it when their parents unleash their funny side. Cracking the occasional appropriate joke allows children to see a different, more relaxed side of the person they call Mom or Dad. A good case of the giggles really can be some of the best treatment for that frustrating parent-teen silence. So, make a date night and attend a funny movie or a comedy show.

Encourage Teens to Succeed

Teenagers who are involved in extra-curricular activities desperately need parental support. Support, of course, means more than writing a check for uniforms and supplies. Parents should make the effort to attend the performances or games, and maybe an occasional practice session if permitted. The physical presence of parents at the after-school activities of young people is a huge element of all-around teenage success.

Teens can feel a great sense of detachment and disappointment when they have no one specific in the audience to perform for. It is enormously reassuring for young people to have a familiar face in the audience.

Let the Kid be the Expert

Most teens have a wealth of information on subjects that parents know nothing about. Fashion, electronics, and music are examples of subjects that an average teenager could likely write a manual on. Ask him for help programming the iPod that has been collecting dust on the dresser or ask her for help choosing an outfit for the next special occasion.

However it is done, it is important to take steps to maintain or re-establish the fading lines of communication most parent-teen relationships suffer. Getting teens to open up may take more than one attempt. What is invaluable is that teenagers, as they become adults, will remember and cherish the efforts their parents made for them.

The copyright of the article How To Reconnect With a Teenager in Parenting Teens is owned by Marcelle Greene Edins. Permission to republish How To Reconnect With a Teenager in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Teen Attitude