It was a cold and dreary winter in a pandemic. The Family Leadership Center was offering a teens class and needed a guide. Lucky me, I got to be one of those guides. What a gift to plan and deliver the first Teens class at FLC. There is nothing like belonging to a community of like-minded learners to brighten a dreary winter. We laughed, we shared, we role played, were courageous and tried new things. We had participants from coast to coast, that’s the bright spot of online learning.
We started each class with a grounding breathing exercise and a little information on the brain. We moved into the class work of how to encourage teens, ways to communicate with teens, and how to deal with some typical, but potentially scary behavior. Each class ended with 20 minutes of group problem solving where we got to the nitty gritty of how to solve common problems of living with teens. And as much as I loved guiding participants through the curriculum, I really want to share with you the golden nuggets they got out of participating in the class.
Are you experiencing challenges with your teen? We’d love to have you join us in the next FLC Teens class being offered by the Family Leadership Center, this program is no charge thanks to generous donations. For more detailed information on the class CLICK HERE. In the meantime, read all these inspiring Golden Nuggets from our first round of participants.
Golden Nuggets from Particpants
“ I used some of the ideas (having faith in my teen) and IT WORKED! My husband had an encounter with our son that was drastically different/calmer than usual.”
“Sitting side by side helps the teen to be cooperative and not feel attacked when there is tension.”
“Teens thrive with our respect.”
“Noticed that when teens were told “I love you” the wound up piece went away- big feelings dissipated and eventually it was reciprocated! Noticed that so many things changed since the pandemic- including delivering words of affection. “I love you” was re-instituted and 17 year-old said “Thank you”.”
“I left a note on the dirty pan, and I returned home to a clean pan with a note on it.”
“Thanks for all the helpful ideas you shared yesterday. We already feel like our son is hearing us and we’re communicating better.”
“I had stopped hugging, and I liked being reminded to hug my kids!”
“We are not alone.”
“I’m asking more curiosity questions and have less judgement.”
“ I’m empowering my teens, and not dealing with things in the heat of the moment.”
“I’m using humor and having conversations outside of the tense moment.”
“ I noticed I was so worried about the distant future, choosing to be more present for bonding with and loving my teen”