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Home › Articles › Communication › Time Together

Time Together

Learn to Enjoy Your Teen

By Gwen Morrison

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With our ever increasing busy schedules, it is easy to lose focus on spending quality time with our teenagers. It is important to remember that even though our children are nearing adulthood, they still require parental involvement. Communication breakdown has been cited as a major cause of parent/teen conflict over the years.

A survey conducted in 2000 focused on how families are connecting with their teenagers. The Global Strategy Group interviewed 400 kids nationwide between the ages of 12 and 15 and parents of children in that age group. The good news: Most teens turn to their parents when they find themselves in times of need. The report stated that overall, 78 percent of teenagers rely on parents for advice.

Eating Together
The disappointing aspect of the research was the realization that there are a large number of families who cannot find time to sit together for family meals. One in four parents reports eating four or less meals a week together as a family. Even more disturbing is that 10 percent of the parents interviewed reported that they eat just one meal a week or never eat with their teens.

Mealtime can be a time of re-connection for families, especially for busy teenagers. It can be a great time to ask questions about your child's day without interruption. If given the opportunity to spend a meal together, keep these points in mind:

  • Turn off the phone during mealtime to ensure quiet, uninterrupted time.
  • Let each child have equal time to talk about their day.
  • Don't interrupt them.
  • Ask specific questions of your teenager (this tells them you are interested).
  • Keep the conversation light; avoid arguing with them at this point.
  • Tell them about your day (this tells them you respect their opinions).
  • Make mealtime fun.
Other Ways to Spend Time Together
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