Parenting Teenagers by Step Publishing
A Parent Guide for Understanding and Connecting with Teens
Mar 26, 2009
If the baby who couldn't fit into a square box still can't follow house rules at age sixteen, parents just might find themselves asking for help from a counselor. Children with strong wills turn into teenagers with difficult attitudes brandishing wills of steel and words that pierce.
An easy-to-follow parent guide, Parenting Teenagers by Step Publishers can help parents connect with teens. Each chapter lays the foundation for the next while teaching parents to identify important changes in their unique teen-aged child. Topics include the following:
Understanding Yourself and Your Teenager
Take steps to improve the relationship:
- your parenting challenge is to help your teenager become confident, responsible, and independent
- to help your teen by working to improve your relationship
- respect is important for a positive relationship
- your teenager's behavior has a purpose
In this chapter parents learn the three styles of parenting and how to balance freedom with limits. Parents must give and expect limits while deciding which style of parenting will help meet the family's goals.
This first chapter will help the parent identify the goals of teen misbehavior with encouraging steps to help ease the stress.
Changing Your Response to Your Teen
Learn how to change an automatic response:
- your teenager has beliefs about how to belong
- your teen's feelings and behaviors come from these beliefs
- you can listen to hear what your teen is thinking and feeling
- you can show your teen that talking about feelings is okay
- you can change your relationship by changing your response to your teenager
Often, changing an automatic response means doing the opposite of what a teen expects. Parents must grow in order to raise a teenager successfully. For example:
- when parents talk about problems together, the teen sees the value in cooperation
- when parents argue often and loudly, the teen sees the value in fighting
- when parents refuse to compromise, the teen sees the value in getting one's own way
Communicating Respect and Encouragement
- special skills help you talk together with your teenager
- you can talk about problems without blaming
- you can use encouragements skills to help your teen feel loved, accepted, respected, and valued
- praise and encouragement are not the same thing
- you need to encourage yourself
Have faith in your teen and encourage him that he can succeed. Expectations are powerful. Teens can sense what parents truly believe. Few teens will believe in themselves if parents don't believe in them first.
Using Consequences to Build Responsibility
- discipline helps your teen become more responsible
- discipline is a way to guide your teen in making choices and decisions
- consequences are a method of discipline that fits the behavior and makes sense to the teen
- using consequences shows respect for all family members
Deciding What to Do: Parts 1 and 2
- sisters and brothers can be expected to get along and solve their own problems
- you can work to build trust with your teen and use your skills if lying or stealing becomes a problem
- talking with your teen about the choices and consequences of sex is important
- your skills can be used to help your teen avoid being involved with drugs
- you can practice and use your parenting skills to keep working on your relationship with your teen
This effective parenting guidebook offers problems, answers, steps and systematic training for parenting teens. Each chapter lays a foundation for the next while including many important teen topics like body image, alcohol, sex, suicide.
For more information or to order the book online, go directly to Step Publishers.
Source:
Dinkmeyer, Don, Sr. Parenting Teenagers. KY: Step Publishers, 1998, ISBN: 978-0-979 5542-1-6
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