The following article was included in the latest issue of the Coalition of Essential Schools and is definitely worth a closer look!<\/p>\n
Raising T<\/em><\/strong>eens: How Parents Can Bridge Societal Challenges<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Parenting philosophies come and go, but old-fashioned values are still the best, says a Binghamton University nursing professor in two new books on raising adolescents.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n “Kids are not just small adults,” Associate Professor Mary Muscari said. “That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s my mantra. Even teenagers don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think like adults. They don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have that ability, those experiences.” In the latest books, Everything Parents Guide to Raising Adolescent Girls<\/em> (with lead author Moira McCarthy), and Everything Parents Guide to Raising Adolescent Boys<\/em> (with lead author Robin Elise Weiss), Muscari notes that although the general issues of parenting don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t change so much, new trends in society can create added challenges. For instance, more families today have two working parents, which can make it difficult to spend time together. Muscari said it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s critical to find time \u00e2\u20ac\u201d and quantity counts along with quality.<\/p>\n “All the toys in the world will never make up for parental time,” she said. “When the job takes priority, kids see that. And that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a really bad place to be as a kid.” Still, Muscari acknowledges that some ideas must be modernized a bit. “The good, old-fashioned family meal that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve long forgotten about is so critical,” she said. “If you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t do it at night because the kids are overscheduled, do it at breakfast. Have some time when people can sit down and share and connect.”<\/p>\n This connection will pay off in the long term, Muscari said. When parents and children communicate well and regularly, kids are less inclined to hide their problems. If your child tells you when something goes wrong, you can get involved before a situation escalates. Communication can help keep kids safe in other ways, too, because gangs and predators don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want a child who runs to his parents for help.<\/p>\n Muscari said she often discusses safety concerns with parents. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s true that children now are more exposed to the world outside their neighborhood, she said, but fear itself can be a threat to kids.<\/p>\n “We can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t make these kids bubble kids, even though we have all these things that we worry about,” she said. The bottom line, she said, is that parents need to be parents. “I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m very dead against that parents as pals business,” Muscari said. “Parents are there to be guides for their children.”<\/p>\n