Topics for Discussion: Preparing for Adolescence
Dr. James Dobson's advice on preparing your children and yourselves for coming adolescence.
Dr. James Dobson advises parents to prepare their children for the teenage years. However, he cautions parents who have younger children not to push their children into adolescence early, and to prepare their children for this turbulent time by spending a weekend away with them when they are between 10-13 years of age to talk to them about:
- Feelings of inferiority
- The pressure to conform
- The meaning of love and commitment
- The strain between generations
- The search for identity
- The meaning of puberty
An additional resource on this subject, from Dr. Dobson, is the Preparing for Adolescence Pack, a 10-session course which provides a road map for the coming years as your young person heads into adolescence. Inside the interactive group guide/workbook, pages of reproducible activities allow you and your young person the opportunity to preemptively work through a number of issues together: sexual development, inferiority, identity and much more. The included eight-CD package is great for the family to listen to together and even comes with two CDs to offer guidance just for parents — answering questions today's teens are asking. These are great for special trips in the car or regular drive times together and reinforce the messages in the group guide/workbook.
Find this resource here.