Thinking parenting Blog
Why we need to let teens do stuff for themselves (aka the case of the teenager and the birthday cheque)
It’s easy to forget how little teenagers know about the world. Partly because they look so grown up and partly because they have that know-it-all attitude. But, in reality, they are only half...
Books on parenting teenagers
The teenage years can be a bit of a shock. Logically, of course, you know they are coming. But it’s impossible to predict exactly how your lovely, loving child will change when they hit the...
Supporting children’s and teenagers’ mental health: resource list
Children and young people’s mental health is hardly out of the news these days but often parents are at a loss how best to help and support a child/teenager who is struggling. So, I have...
Talking to teenagers about porn
You might not want to hear this. If you have a child aged 11-16 years, it is highly likely they have already viewed pornography online. The majority of that age group have watched porn. Almost all of...
Weird and wonderful facts about teenagers
As the parent of teenagers, I have found that knowing a little bit about their internal mechanisms really helps me keep some of their less desirable behaviour in perspective. So, for your amusement...
How to support teens and tweens to become better students (by Lucy Parsons)
Guest post by Lucy Parsons We all want our children to make the most of their education. However, when you watch a teenager diligently putting hours into their revision only to be rewarded with less...
Parenting teenagers: how much freedom at what age?
Some of the hardest decisions parents of teenagers face are around how much freedom to give at what age. What is the correct curfew time for a 14 year old? At what age is it ok for them to go to the...
Teaching teens self-organisation skills
Lots of the characteristics that we associate with maturity are related to the brain’s frontal lobes. This part of the brain governs our higher executive functions such as being able to switch...
Teenagers’ bedrooms: how messy is too messy?
What is it about teenagers’ bedrooms? It’s like there’s some secret lesson at school that they all attend after which dirty pants, wet towels, half-empty crisp packets and every...
Is your child ready to stay home alone?
The school holidays can be a logistical nightmare for working parents. What to do with the kids if you can’t take time off?! Younger children are usually well catered for through holiday clubs...
Fun family weekends to tear teens away from tech
Sometimes, if you want to tear teens away from their tech and grab some quality family time, the best plan is to get them out of the house for the whole weekend and as far away as possible from the...
Best parenting websites for teenagers and tweens
Being a parent of teenagers, I know there are fewer choices out there when you are looking for parenting advice on teenage issues. Whether it’s professional help you are seeking or peer group...
More fun family activities to tear teens away from tech
My mission to find new ways to entice my teenagers to make more time for family activities (and less time for tech) continues. Now that the weather is warming up, the options are widening –...
Using a behaviour contract with teenagers
Regular readers will know that I am a big fan of reward charts. They help children to focus on the behaviour that is expected from them and they remind parents to catch their children being good and...
Fun family activities to tear tweens/teens away from technology
Like many people, I worry about my teens spending too much time staring at a screen. As a family, we are all pretty active but we tend to do our sports separately rather than together. We usually...
Communicating with teenagers: top tips for parents
Good communication is essential for building and maintaining relationships – chatting, sharing experiences, resolving problems and agreeing ground-rules. Which can be a bit of a problem when it...
How to have fun family time with a teenager
One of my teenagers is a bit of a grump at the moment. Put it down to hormones or identity struggles, whatever the cause the result isn’t always pleasant. After dragging him to a barbecue this...
Parenting Teenagers: a beginner’s guide
Welcome to the parenting teenagers years! During this stage of parenting there will be no handy help from midwives, health visitors or mother and toddler groups. You won’t be swapping tips...
How do I cope with Teenage Tantrums?
Dealing with teenage tantrums isn’t always easy, especially when you’re juggling work pressures too. Teenagers can go from nought to ten out of the blue, sometimes over what seem like trivial...
How to help your child have a positive body image
Subconsciously, I equate food with love. As a result, I can take it too personally when my loved ones don’t want the food I provide, and I probably project that guilt onto them. I also...
How to be a good mother to a teenager
As a parent, it’s often hard to know what’s important and what isn’t. Does it matter if your child eats their chips with their fingers at the dinner table? Or is it more important...
What’s going on in my teenager’s brain?!
Teenagers and toddlers have a lot in common. An ability to go from 0 to 10 on the tantrum scale completely out of the blue, a stubborn refusal to follow guidance, fierce fixations on particular...
Parenting teenagers without conflict
The thing about parenting teenagers (and parenting in general) is that every time you think you’ve got a handle on it, something changes. Strategies that work well with one child seem to have...