by Dennis Coates | Aug 4, 2022 | Critical Thinking, Education, Parenting, Personal Strength, Self-Esteem, Strong for Parenting, Teen Culture, Teen Success
Children are miracles. Loving parents know this. But kids start out life innocent and only learn what they observe and they’re taught. And these days, slogans such as “Black Lives Matter” are visible everywhere. When required to declare race on a...
by Dennis Coates | Jul 5, 2022 | Adolescence, Alcohol, Drugs, Encouragement, Mentoring, Parent-child Communication, Parenting Blogs, Peer Pressure, Self-Esteem, Teen Culture, Teen Sex, Teen Success
Teens need to be liked and included by friends. And in all sorts of ways, friends can pressure your child to conform and get involved in what they’re doing. Not all peer pressure is bad. If your child’s friends have good values, they can influence your...
by Dennis Coates | Jun 7, 2022 | Behavior Change, Education, Health & Nutrition, Parenting, Peer Pressure, Personal Strength, Programs, Teen Culture, Teen Suicide
It’s June 2022, and we are learning about mass murders. Almost on a daily basis. Innocent people dying. Even little kids. Did you see this coming? If you didn’t see it coming, maybe it’s because you didn’t want to believe the signs all around...
by Dennis Coates | May 10, 2022 | Adolescence, Adolescent Brain, Critical Thinking, Parenting, Peer Pressure, Personal Strength, Self-Esteem, Teen Culture, Teen Suicide
As I write this, I’m aware that these are troubled times. So I was alarmed but not surprised at reports of a rising trend in teen suicide. The CDC says that suicide is the second leading cause of death among teenagers. The word “unthinkable” comes to...
by Dennis Coates | Feb 14, 2022 | Adolescent Brain, Behavior Change, Critical Thinking, Education, Health & Nutrition, Parenting, Parenting Books, Self-Esteem, Teen Culture, Teen Success, Work
The pandemic has been tough on kids. Online classes, more time at home…kids could be excused for spending more time in front of screens. While it’s true that technology has some amazing benefits, there’s this: It’s addictive. The rewards from...
by Dennis Coates | Dec 11, 2020 | Adolescence, Critical Thinking, Education, Health & Nutrition, Parent-child Communication, Peer Pressure, Teen Culture, Teen Sex, Teen Suicide
As I write this, the Covid-19 coronavirus in the U.S. has been killing about 3,000 people every day. I know several people who have become infected. A member of my extended family died from the infection. This pandemic has brought out the best and the worst in our...