Role Models for Your Teen

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The teen years are a critical time for role models in your children's lives. Often you will find teens have a hard time talking to their parents. This isn't always the case, but even in the closest families, teens often feel more comfortable talking to another trusted adult about some of the things going on in their lives.

Of course you would prefer your teen would go to an adult when they need to talk something important out, instead of relying on their friends who may not have the insight an older, more experienced adult would have.

Obviously you have no real control over who your teen goes to for advice, but there are a number of ways you can steer your teen in the right direction.

The best chance your teen has for interacting with other adults is in extracurricular activities. There are all kinds of activities your teen can be involved with, here are some that come to mind: church youth group, scouts, sports, music, school clubs, community service, just to name a few. Personally I don't encourage parents to involve their teens in so many activities that it leads to burnout for both the parents and the teen, but carefully selected activities led by good and capable leaders will enrich your teen's life in a way few things can, and will increase the likelihood that your teen will establish a relationship with one of the group leaders.

One word of caution, however. Talk to your teen about their activities and get a feel for yourself the effectiveness of the group leader. Not to say that they have to excel in every way, but just make sure that they are a good role model, and not a negative influence in your teen's life. There is the potential of bad leaders in any activity, including in a church setting, and it is the parents' responsibility to make sure their teen is in a positive atmosphere, influenced by mature leaders.

Involvement in group activities is especially great for teens of single parents. Teens who don't have regular contact with mature adults of both sexes often have a hard time later in normal adult relationships. Being exposed to "normal" at this age very much increases the teen's chances of growing into a well-adjusted adult. I have seen this often with boys who are raised by their moms with not much influence or negative influence from their dads.

Placed into group settings, with responsible adult male leaders, these teen boys have much less difficulty transitioning into adulthood. It also takes of a lot of the pressure off the often overworked mothers.

From my own experience, I have found that often other adults can help my teen in ways that I can't, mostly due to big differences in our personalities. I am more of a quiet introspective thinker, and my daughter is very outgoing, and has a lot of potential leadership qualities that are hard for me to help her develop because I do not possess those qualities myself. Knowing how important it is to help her develop her natural abilities at this impressionable age, I make sure there are other adults in her life who can help influence her in ways I can't. My daughter and I are very close, but there are just a lot of things that I can't help her with, so I encourage her in developing relationships with adults who do have those abilities.

My daughter and I both respect our different abilities. It is very easy to be critical of people who are not like us, and parents and teens very easily fall into this trap. The best thing to do is be honest about your own abilities, and of the abilities of your teen, and do whatever is necessary to find outside influences for your teen. The more you can help your teen develop their abilities now, the less they will have to do on their own later (often, the hard way).

And don't forget, you are a role model too. Get involved in the lives of your teen's friends, or volunteer to help in a group activity in some way, even if only occasionally. There are teens out there who really need to hear what you have to say.

Article Source: http://www.articleset.com

About the Author

Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom who publishes the Creative Homemaking Recipe of the Week Club, a weekly newsletter that contains quick, easy dinner ideas and money-saving household hints. To subscribe send a blank e-mail message to FreeRecipes-subscribe@egroups.com. Visit Creative Homemaking and in the Home and Garden section of Suite 101.

10 Fabulous Reasons Why Troubled Youth Need Military School

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When it comes to handling troubled teens, the public school system is not that well equipped. More often than not, many parents seek help from military schools in order to educate and discipline their derailed youngsters. Recently, military schools, which seemed to get out of the scene in the late 1960's and early 1970's, have started to be crowded with enrollees steadily.

Nowadays, its hard to make a teen get into a military academy. But why the boom of military school enrollments? Here are the 10 reasons behind this phenomenon:

1. Military Schools Have Become More Choosy

It's not that military schools, boot camps or any military-oriented programs used to be very undiscriminating back then. Only, nowadays, when a teen is overly unruly, a military school is most likely to not admit the youngster. This is because military programs are not leaning towards the forcing of teenagers to "clean up their act" if they, themselves don't really want to.

2. Military Schools Are Now More Geared Towards Imposing Proper Discipline to a Child

Traditionally, military schools are definitely known to be the house of disclinary actions in molding youth. Today, modern and more effective methods have been developed to improve the administration of proper discipline to teenagers. Teens will be subject to strong discipline but this does not entail they will be abused.

3. Military Schools Are Now More Focused in Giving Structure to a Child

The highly structured ambience provided by military schools can help channel the unfocused energies of an adolescent who has not achieved his or her full potential. The structured environment provided by military schools promotes the values of organization and self-management.

4. There are Military Schools that Offer Academics

They offer stringent and modernized academic program for the modern needs of teeners.

5. Military Schools are Tailored to Best Suit the Needs of a Teen

Teens have individual needs that must be met. This is supported by military schools. Through thorough assessment, military-oriented programs can be customized to best serve what each teenager needs. More and more military schools offer education that fits with smaller class sizes. There are those that provide more opportunities to work one on one with teachers and staff.

6. Military Schools Emphasize Fitness

With emphasis on physical fitness, military schools serve the purpose of being useful for teens whose parents consider to be "couch potatoes". Through various sports and other rigorous and yet very beneficial physical activities, definitely they will become more skillful and able-bodied than they used to be.

7. Military Schools Don't Stunt the Social Life of a Teen

In contrary to the dated notion about military schools, positive peer environment exists, which is enforced through honor code. From the very start, a military school is designed to provide a high level of comradeship. With a military school, a social life is possible without the distractions from the outside. This way cadets can do better in and out of the classroom, which leads to their academic success.

8. Military Schools Help Motivate Teens to Become Matured, Responsible Citizens

With a disciplined and structured context that is both physically and emotionally healthy, cadets are motivated to develop self-discipline and also to reach their full potential in every way - physically, intellectually and spiritually.

9. Military Schools Aid in the Moral Molding of Teens and the Learning of Other Important Values

Military-oriented programs are enhanced to provide good values, particularly those that will teach teenagers to have a dignified moral stance. Aside from leadership, discipline, and accountability, what could be more important than being able to inculcate solidarity and respect to a teen, not only for his superiors but also to his equals.

10. Military Schools Provide Other Long-Term Benefits

More benefits are offered to teenagers who came from a military school. Because of the values and skills learned, when teens have experience going through military school, the community is more inclined to giving them better consideration when it comes to employment, e.g., military jobs, and other community activities.

With these reasons, who can go wrong with going to a military school?

Article Source: http://www.articleset.com

About the Author

Mary Murtha has BLS and M. Div degrees majoring in biblical studies and ethics. Her main web site is The content Corner at: http://www.thecontentcorner.com.

Training Activities For Youth Sports

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Training is required in all sport activities as you need to know the rules and how to play the game. Kids of different ages love games which involves running and some different type of activity. To name a few football, basketball, baseball and many more require training. In training you can make mistakes but they can be rectified there itself. While playing it is essential that you exercise to remain fit and healthy.

Warm up is the first session that you should do before starting any activity. Warm up helps your body to adjust according to the surroundings. This is essential because if you are not prepared for training or playing your body can pain the whole day. Small accidents can take place to like a sprain in the leg or even severe injury like internal bleeding or muscle pull. These injuries require hospitalization in quick time. So warming up before your game play or training is essential.

Training activities are different for every sport. You need to have the right gear and equipments for the desired sport. For basketball it is essential to have a court with basketball rings and markings on the court. It also requires light weighted shoes and a basketball. This game can be played indoors out outdoors too. Bad weather can obstruct its training. Basketball is usually played on wooden surface or on tar surface. There are wooden courts which are used extensively in the United States. In this sport shuttling and shooting training is given to increase performance.

Baseball requires lot of practice to have a perfect game. Training can be monotonous at times but this is the only place where you can improve your game. Baseball training requires lot of accessories and gears which you need to use while playing. From helmet to knee pads with gloves and the right slugger is all you require to play baseball. The pitcher and fielders require a special type of glove which is used for playing baseball. This glove helps the player to catch the ball.

Football skills are developed over a period of time. You need a lot of dedication toward football. Once for training you must be in the filed from all sides. Football requires less external gears. Studs and knee guard are the main one. The goal keeper requires extra glove to save the ball from goal. Football training can be conducted in any season, in wet football is fun.
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Group Activities For Baptist Youth

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There are different religions all over the world. But despite these different beliefs and religion, most people still get along well with others. Being a member of the Baptist Church does not necessarily make you some sort of alien.

Most Baptist Church youths are troubled because they often think that other religions will discriminate them. With the various Baptist Church youth activities, their minds will be enlightened.

The Baptist Church has a youth ministry wherein all interested youths can join. The purpose of the Baptist Church is just the same with other churches. They want to teach the youth of today about Christ the Savior. Aside from that, the youth ministry will also teach the members to be disciplined in their faith.

How can these goals be achieved? That is up to the leaders of the youth ministry. In most cases, the ministry conducts Bible studies, evangelism, fellowships, ministry opportunities, and other youth activities.

The parents also play a very important role in achieving the goals of the youth group. Their support is a must so that all the activities of the youth ministry can be achieved. The ministry will also work with the parents and at the same time support them to nurture, instill, and instruct the necessary Godly character to their teens.

During the school year, the youth ministry meets once a week and usually on Wednesdays. In the summer, the group meets several times a week because that is also the best time to conduct several activities.

If you want to know more about the Baptist Church, you can always log on to the net and search for the youth ministry. There is a lot of Baptist Church all over the world and you have to find one that is nearest your place of residence.

A good thing about the youth ministry of the Baptist Church is that most of them have online sites. If you have an internet connection at home, you can easily take part in forums and other online activities.

Perhaps you can also find a local Baptist Church. That way, you can easily monitor your kid's participation in the church. You can even go with your child when there are activities.

By encourgaring your kid to take active participation in the Baptist Church youth ministry, he/she can meet new friends in the area. The various activities like evangelism, fellowships, and ministry opportunities will help them a lot.

Your kid will be surrounded with good people who will always lead them nearest to Christ. Rest assured that whenever your kid goes out of the house, the Lord will be beside him. Your kid will be far from temptations and bad influence.

It is now time to start looking for a reputable Baptist Church youth ministry. If you want your kid to learn more about Christ and Godly ways, the best way is to become a member of a youth ministry.

Being a teen can be very difficult for your kid because this is the time of great adjustment. They often go through problems and peer pressure. The best way to keep your kid away from the temptations of the modern world is to let them be a member of a youth ministry.

Get involved; choose the right Baptist Church youth ministry and let your kid enjoy the various youth activities.

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