It's Summer Time With Teens, Now What?

Ahhh.

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Summer time. I don't know about you but for me summer is a time to let up on the structure of the school year and I really look forward to it.
No homework, no getting up early, no rushing to be on time for the bus or school, being able to go out during the week to a movie or a theme park, etc.

Other than the kids complaining that they're bored at times, summer is definitely good! Whether your teens are involved in activities throughout the summer or just hang out and relax, summer can offer a great opportunity for us to measure our teen's independence and sense of responsibility or in some instances an opportunity to develop some independence and responsibility. We all strive to make sure our teens are becoming independent and responsible young adults but they don't just wake up one morning and all of a sudden magically have it! Independence is being self sufficient, self reliant, able to do things on our own without the aid or support of others. Responsibility is knowing what to do and the appropriate time to do it, being dependable and accountable for our actions.

Ways to help your teen develop their skills further: Extend curfew and see how that goes.

If your child handles their extended curfew well then that will show you the maturity they are developing.
If they don't handle it well then you know they need more help in reaching that point.

If you find your child needs more development, identify the areas and establish some goals so you can help your child develop in those specific areas.

Chores - give your teen age-appropriate chores to be done and set time limits with your expectations. Many people give their kids chores to do then they get upset when their teen doesn't complete them within what the parent feels is a reasonable amount of time.
Keep in mind, a parent's idea of a reasonable timeframe can be much different from a teen's idea of a reasonable timeframe.

For example, if you ask your teen to take out the trash on Monday and 2 days later the trash bag is still sitting in the kitchen, your teen's logic may be that the garbage truck doesn't come until Thursday so that's when they thought they'd take it out! Stretch your teen's limits. If they are doing a great job sorting the laundry, go the next step and teach them how to actually use the washing machine and the dryer.

Hint: when they're just beginning to learn how to do laundry emphasize that they should always use COLD water (at least to start unless you'd like your favorite white shirt to suddenly be pink!). Friends - take this opportunity to invite their friends over, get to know their friends and the kind of kids your teen is spending time with.

Having this insight into the kids your teen is hanging out with will tell you a lot.

Set boundaries your teen can handle.

Make sure you set them up to succeed and to feel proud of their accomplishments.
Help them gain the self confidence they need to continue to grow into independent and responsible young adults. And don't forget to have fun this summer too!