If school hasn’t already started for your child, it is just around the corner for others. Did your child spend any time brushing up on their math skills this summer? How about their grammar? Well if your tween is a regular texter, their grammar skills might be lacking. A new study recently came out that found tweens who use shorthand (also known as tech speak) when texting, are more likely to use improper English, compared to those who don’t text. Let me give you an example of a message that might be sent… R u goin 2 b round ltr … Continue reading →

A few months ago I attended a parenting class at my church. One of the dads was expressing how it is our job to monitor our teen’s use of technology. Of course that makes sense, right? But as I pointed out, it isn’t always so easy. Let’s face it…teens usually know more about technology than we do. That means they can get around things. For instance, some parents look at the computer’s history to see which websites their children have been on. But most kids know how to clear out their history. A recent survey from McAfee found that 71% … Continue reading →

One of the concerns raised by many when it comes to teens and social media is that it replaces personal interaction. I have heard many people say that teenagers don’t know how to talk anymore because texting and other forms of technology have taken over. Well that may not necessarily be true, according to research done by “Commonsense Media.” In fact, you might be surprised to learn that some teens would rather do without. The study involved the first generation of 13 and 17 year olds to go through a vast array of media and technological devices. In other words, … Continue reading →

During a particularly difficult time for my daughter, she sent me a text one day from school. She needed to tell me something. I responded, she responded, I responded…it turned into a 20 minute “texting” conversation. All of this was while she was in a class. I felt a twinge of guilt. Should I really be texting my daughter while she is in school? I’m sure most parents would say no. But the circumstances wouldn’t allow me to say, “We’ll talk about it later.” The reality is that she may not have been ready to discuss what she was. Now … Continue reading →

Like most of you who have heard about the tragedy in Ohio, my heart has felt broken over the loss of life. Yet another high school shooting, with the death toll now at three. It brings back memories. Not just memories of previous high school shootings—such as Columbine—but memories of my 17-year-old son’s first year of high school. You see, at first it was thought that the shooter in this latest incident was bullied. Since then it has been said he wasn’t “well,” something is psychologically wrong with him. That was the case nearly four years ago when a high … Continue reading →

After being on his feet for the last three hours, all Gordon wanted to do was find a nice, quiet bench and sit down. Of course, that wasn’t an option. Under other circumstances, this simple request would seem logical, but they were on vacation, and Peggy had made it abundantly clear they were going to take full advantage of every second. But it was the Smithsonian, for heaven’s sake! You could literally walk around for days and not see all of it. That hadn’t deterred Peggy in the least, nor did it appear to deter Rachel, who was going strong, … Continue reading →

If your teenager cannot connect with you on a relationship level or if that relationship is too stressful, painful, or difficult, there are plenty of other places your teen can connect. Even if your relationship is merely strained and not broken altogether, your teen has plenty of options for connection, validation, acceptance, and support apart from you. You are in competition for your teen’s connection. You are competing with peers and with technology because many of those other options for connection are only a cell phone or keypad away. It used to be that you punished a child by sending … Continue reading →