by Dennis Coates | Jul 19, 2021 | Adolescence, Adolescent Brain, Behavior Change, Critical Thinking, Parent-child Communication, Teen Success
Driving home, I saw a young man walking on the sidewalk. Shirtless in the midday sun, he sported a tanned, muscular body. He seemed oblivious to a future consequence: excessive exposure to solar radiation (sunlight) can cause skin cancer. The sight reminded me of a...
by Dennis Coates | Sep 7, 2020 | Adolescent Brain, Critical Thinking, Education, Health & Nutrition, Parenting, Parenting Books, Podcasts, Teen Culture
It’s well documented: how kids with growing brains can be adversely affected – for life – by too much screen time. It’s a scary issue for parents, because the new technologies are both amazingly useful and amazingly dangerous. And practically...
by Dennis Coates | Aug 5, 2020 | Adolescence, Adolescent Brain, Health & Nutrition, Parenting Books, Rebellion, Teen Culture, Teen Suicide
As Tom Kersting points out in his new book, Disconnected, kids graduating from college these days are the first generation to experience their entire adolescence while owning a smartphone. As a result, they spend hours a day glued to the small screen while engaged...
by Dennis Coates | May 26, 2020 | Adolescence, Adolescent Brain, Critical Thinking, Encouragement, Parent-child Communication, Peer Pressure, Self-Esteem, Teen Driving, Teen Sex, Teen Suicide
If your child should receive a request for a nude pic, how do you think they would react? You’d be surprised how many young people would laugh and consider it a harmless, fun thing to do, perhaps a way to be included with the cool crowd, never thinking about the...
by Dennis Coates | May 10, 2020 | Adolescence, Adolescent Brain, Health & Nutrition, Parenting, Parenting Books, Self-Esteem, Teen Culture, Teen Sex
During the COVID-19 shut-down I heard reports that many LGBTQ college students who have been forced to study at home are experiencing unusual stress levels caused by their parents’ failure to accept their gender identity. They believe that their child has chosen...
by Dennis Coates | Apr 11, 2020 | Adolescence, Adolescent Brain, Critical Thinking, Education, Encouragement, Inspiring Quotes, Mentoring, Parent-child Communication, Parenting, Personal Strength, Teen Success
“There’s nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.” – Buckminster Fuller This quote made me think of my West Point class. Before I arrived there, I had made straight A’s for 12 straight years, graduating...
