Happy Memorial Day! For many people, the Memorial Day holiday is the start of summer. If you’re a parent of a teen, you may be wondering how to make the best of summer break both for you and your teen. We have written many blogs in the past about ways to make it a great summer, and we encourage you
Read moreA two-year study by researchers from the School of Social Policy & Practice at the University of Pennsylvania has revealed a relationship between the presence of cultural resources in a neighborhood and key aspects of social wellbeing, particularly in less advantaged neighborhoods. Low- and moderate-income residents in New York City neighborhoods with many cultural resources are healthier, better educated, and
Read moreIt’s National Volunteer Week – perfect time to talk to your teen about volunteerism! To develop into healthy, responsible, productive adults, youth actually NEED the opportunity to make a difference in the world. America’s Promise, the Alliance for Youth, lists the chance to help others as one of the five resources every teen needs to succeed in life. Teens develop
Read moreIt may only be Spring, but if you’re a parent of a teen, now is the time to start planning for summer! Teens who are bored, have a lot of downtime, or have less supervision during the summer months run a higher risk of falling into the wrong pastimes. Incidences of first-time cigarette, marijuana or alcohol use for underage kids
Read moreTomorrow is #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving fueled by the power of social media and collaboration. Celebrated on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, #GivingTuesday unites countries around the world by sharing our capacity to care for and empower one another. Directly combating the materialism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday kicks off the charitable season and provides a worldwide
Read moreThis summer, we encourage you to create a summer bucket list with your teen! The idea is to create a list of activities your family can enjoy doing together. (Your teen may also want to create a separate list for activities to do with his/her friends.) Here are some good reasons for creating a summer bucket list: Fights boredom. Teens
Read moreA part-time job is an excellent and constructive use of teens’ free time during the summer break. The benefits of summer employment include: earning spending money, obtaining valuable work experience for a resume, learning time management skills, developing new confidence and independence, gaining workplace skills to be more marketable in the future, and providing the opportunity for your teen to
Read moreA passion. That seems to be a buzz word nowadays, but believe it or not, it could be a great thing for your teenager. Typically, when people talk about someone having a passion, they are describing someone who loves what they do and are good at it. Why Does My Teen Need a Passion? There are two good reasons that
Read moreJanuary is National Mentoring Month. Mentors are incredibly important to teenagers, and as a result, we felt that it would be a fantastic opportunity to provide our readers with some of the information provided by MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, the lead agency of the National Mentoring Month: In real life, who do you turn to? Nine million kids in
Read moreThe holidays are supposed to be a time of great joy and celebration. However, we all know that that is not always the case when we have teens! We want you and your loves ones to have the best holidays possible, so we offer these recommendations: Get their input. Don’t assume you know how your teen wants to spend the
Read moreAs children grow older, it is all too easy to give up on holiday traditions. Everyone’s busy schedule is crammed with extra to-do lists, parents tend to be feeling a little tired from the pressure, and teens can be less-than-enthusiastic participants in family activities. But, we encourage you to not give up on holiday traditions for two main reasons! First,
Read moreResearch is showing that teens are spending a large amount of time on screens and it’s negatively impacting their overall well-being. According to research from the Kaiser Family Foundation, the typical teen logs more than seven hours a day and more than 50 hours a week in front of a TV, computer, tablet, or cell phone screen. Here are some
Read moreAs the school year approaches, many team sports are already in full swing with tryouts, open gym, and practices. High school sports offer teens a multitude of benefits, and a good coach can really make a big difference in a teen’s life. But, parents don’t always see eye-to-eye with coaches. While one parent may be concerned about a child’s lack
Read moreAs you may already know, communicating with teenagers is not always easy. Their conversations can be filled with one-word responses and plenty of eye-rolling. So, what’s a parent to do if they want to have a strong relationship with the teen in their life? Try to engage your teenager in activities that may naturally create bonds and spark interesting conversation:
Read moreFor many, Memorial Day is the start of summer, and many teens are not sure what they would like to do over this long break. One option would be a summer job. While employment numbers have been low for the past few years, the economy is showing improvement. CBS News just recently reported that employment for teens, between the ages
Read moreMany of us enjoy the Arts – music, theater, paintings and other visual arts. They can make our world seem more beautiful, and bring us joy and new perspective. But, did you know that the Arts can have a big impact on youth development? Research shows that exposure to the Arts can help teens develop many positive skills and capacities
Read moreTechnology has significantly changed the way we do things and the way we interact with those around us. In many ways, it has improved our lives and given us new opportunities, but it also has the potential for dominating our lives and eating up time that could be spent in more productive ways. Pew Research Center recently released a report
Read moreFor many people, a new year feels full of hope and possibility, which is probably why so many of us feel the desire to improve ourselves as the year begins. If your teen is having that urge, Middle Earth is offering our “top ten list” for the best New Year’s Resolutions for youth. Give this list to your teen and
Read moreThe school break for the holidays has begun, and our absolute best tip for surviving it with your teen is to have fun! Here are 20 ideas for activities your teen can do over the holiday break. Encourage your teenager to choose a couple of these activities as a family experience or time with their friends. Bake and decorate cookies.
Read moreWith all of the holiday hype, this season is not always easy! There is stress, extra family, teens home from school, demands on your time, financial burden, and unrealistic expectations. We want your family to have the best holidays possible, so we offer these recommendations: Fight boredom. Time off from school with nothing to do increases the chance that your
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