by Dennis Coates | Apr 25, 2018 | Behavior Change, Critical Thinking, Education, Encouragement, Personal Strength, Programs, Teen Success
In my first draft of the above title, the word “Underprivileged” appeared before “Kids.” But the game I’m talking about is chess, which can help make any kid smarter, not just at-risk kids or kids from low-income families. That’s...
by Dennis Coates | Mar 8, 2018 | Adolescence, Adolescent Brain, Alcohol, Critical Thinking, Drugs, Education, Fitness, Health & Nutrition, Parent-child Communication, Parenting, Peer Pressure, Personal Strength, Rebellion, Self-Esteem, Teen Culture, Teen Sex, Teen Success
One of the underlying themes of my writing is that parents of teens need to be realistic. But being realistic doesn’t necessarily imply some kind of worst-case scenario. Because realistically, lots of really wonderful things can happen during adolescence. For...
by Dennis Coates | Feb 22, 2018 | Parent-child Communication, Rebellion, Strong for Parenting
Billions of human beings follow their separate paths, steps followed by steps largely unknown to the people around them – even friends and acquaintances. This limited ability to know for sure what’s happening in the lives of others in any given day —...
by Dennis Coates | Feb 6, 2018 | Adolescence, Behavior Change, Education, Health & Nutrition, Interviews, Parent-child Communication, Parenting Videos, Teen Sex
After puberty, every normal child will develop the ability to procreate, which includes this necessary element: sexual desire. This is a good thing for the young person and the human species; but the physical changes and new feelings aren’t easy for an adolescent to...
by Dennis Coates | Jan 24, 2018 | Adolescence, Health & Nutrition, Parenting, Peer Pressure, Teen Culture
“Every year, teens are asked about their general happiness, in addition to how they spend their time. We found that teens who spent more time seeing their friends in person, exercising, playing sports, attending religious services, reading or even doing homework...