Selasa, 23 April 2013

Keeping your teen busy during the summer months

Most teenagers love the summer months.....school is out, no more studying and plenty of time to have fun and be a kid.  As parents, especially working parents, finding something to keep your teen occupied during the summer months can be frustrating.  Most teens will result to increased time on the phone or maybe playing video games or being on the computer for more than 10 hours a day.  Teens need constructive activities to keep them from being bored and out of trouble.  Below is a list of productive activities you may want to get your teen involved in this summer:

Summer volunteer jobs--if your teen is old enough,  check out local hospitals, shelters, nursing homes, etc. to see if they have a volunteer program available for teenage children.  Most volunteer jobs are flexible, working one hour a week to daily.  Volunteering can be very rewarding for your teen and can also be used on students' applications for college.  Helpful websites...http://www.volunteermatch.org/ or http://www.voa.org/

Sports programs--your local YMCA or recreation center may have information on what sports programs are available for your teen this summer.  Sports is a great tool for exercise and teaching your child about teamwork and competition; also keeping your teen busy while promoting social skills.

Mentoring--older teens may want to become mentors to younger children.  Research has shown that teen mentoring programs can benefit with higher self-esteem and more self-confidence.  It can also possibly open doors for future endeavors.

Increase household chores--don't make your teen a maid but give your teen increased responsibilities around the house.  Mowing the lawn, painting, cleaning the garage, etc.  An incentive for completing their chores could be money or a gift.  This helps make your teen responsible and self sufficient while learning the value of earning money.

Whatever you decide for your teen this summer, sit down with your child and brainstorm some ideas.  Try to come up with something your teen is interested in and would enjoy doing.  After all summer is about having fun