Resources for Parents of Teens
Craig has put together a list of books that can be helpful for parents of adolescents, along with links to helpful websites:
- Center for Parent/Youth Understanding is a non-profit organization committed to helping build strong families by serving to bridge the cultural-generational gap between parents and teenagers
- Fuller Youth Institute Leveraging research into resources that elevate leaders, kids, and families.
- Plugged In Online is a Focus on the Family publication designed to help equip parents, youth leaders, ministers, and teens with the essential tools that will help them to understand, navigate, and impact the culture in which they live. Entertainment is a potent influence on our culture for both good and evil. Through our reviews and discussions of that entertainment, we hope to spark intellectual thought, family discussion, spiritual growth, and a strong desire to follow the command of Colossians 2:8: “See to it that no ones takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition, and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”
- Screen It! helps protect your kids and save you money by avoiding inappropriate and/or bad movies. A small group of reviewers not affiliated with any political, social, or religious group provids unbiased reviews, allowing parents to determine whether a movie is appropriate for them and their kids based on THEIR values.
- Amazon.com or Christianbook.com makes it fast and efficient to find any of the following books used or new, and then have them shipped straight to your house!
- Homeword.com Includes helpful products, daily devotionals, articles and media to encourage healthy relationships between parents and teens.
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A Parents Guide to the Middle School Years by Joe Bruzzese, MA “Educator Joe Bruzzese believes that this time can be full of positive transformation as your child gains independence and your parental role shifts from omnipresent manager to supportive coach. Timely topics include cyberbullying, depression, and choosing realistic and rewarding extracurricular activities.”
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Boundaries With Teens: When to Say Yes and How to Say No by Dr. John Townsend “Here is the expert insight and guidance you need to help your teens take responsibility for their actions, attitudes, and emotions and gain a deeper appreciation and respect both for you and for their own lives. Discover how your teenager thinks. learn how to apply spiritual principles to specific problems. Boundaries With Teens can help you establish wise and loving limits that make a positive difference in your adolescent, in the rest of the family, and in you.
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Creative Correction: Extraordinary Ideas for Everyday Discipline by Lisa Whelchel “Has your child been acting disrespectfully? Lying? Whining? Leaving a Mess? For these and many other situations you face as a parent, Lisa Whelchel offers refreshing ideas to help you win the discipline battle.”
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Girls on Track: A Parents Guide to Inspiring Our Daughters to Achieve a Lifetime of Self-Esteem and Respect by Molly Barker This ten-week self-esteem building plan will instill resiliency in young girls and enhance their emotional, social, physical, mental and spiritual health. Activities and lessons are designed for parents and girls to do together.
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Growing Pains: Advice for Parents of Teens By Tim Sanford, M.A., L.P.C. and Tim Geare, M.A., MFCC Question and Answer formatting provides Biblically-based guides to adolescent topics including; dating and sexuality, character development, family relationships, tackling the tough issues, and stress and anxiety.
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Parenting Today’s Adolescent: Helping Your Child Avoid the Traps of the Preteen adn Teen Years by Dennis and Barbara Rainey The Rainey’s draw from their own experiences raising six children, teaching hundreds of pre-adolescents in Sunday School, and speaking with parents throughout America to provide them a mapped-out plan for adolescence.
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Positive Discipline for Teenagers: Empowering Your Teen and Yourself Through Kind and Firm Parenting by Jane Nelson, Ed.D., and Lynn Lott, M.A. This revised edition shows you how to break the destructive cycle of guilt and blame and work toward greater understanding and communication with your adolescents.
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Preparing for Adolescence: How to Survive the Coming Years of Change by Dr. James Dobson One of America’s leading family psychologists, Dr. James Dobson, knows how to speak directly and sincerely to adolescents about the topics that trouble them the most, including; feelings of inferiority, conformity, puberty, romantic love, and identity.
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Relief For Hurting Parents: How to Prepare Younger Children for Less Dangerous Journeys Through Teenage Years By Buddy Scott Reveals how to: Do your best to save or preserve your children, respond to unacceptable attitudes or behaviors, feel better about yourself as a parent, become stronger in your role as a parent, feel less intimidated by strong-willed kids, work with schools, and much more.
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Engaging the Soul of Youth Culture: Bridging Teen Worldviews with Christian Truth By Dr. Walt Mueller Founder and president of the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding helps us to navigate the troubling and confusing terrain of teen worldviews so that we can effectively and compassionately pass along good news: our God is their God, our Savior can be their Savior.
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The Space Between: A Parents Guide to Teenage Development By Dr. Walt Mueller With empathy and practical tools, this book will help you understand the changes your teen is experiencing, and help you effectively parent them as you explore how to create a smoother adolescent period for your teen and begin to break the walls of misunderstanding.
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Teen Speaks Out: “What I Wish My Parents Knew About My Sexuality” By Josh McDowell If you want to equip young people to live moral lives in today’s sexually promiscuous culture, you need to be in tune with their gut-level struggles. Teens in your active community need to know that their parents, pastors, and youth leaders are able to equip them emotionally, spiritually and intellectually to deal with sexual pressures.
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When Kids Hurt: Help For Adults Navigating the Adolescent Maze By Chap Clark and Steve Rabey Helps lay out practical ways caring adults can have a profound impact on teens. This book is an essential guide for youth pastors and volunteer leaders, educators, parents and all adults seeking to reach out to today’s adolescents.
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Yes, Your Teen Is Crazy! Loving Your Kid Without Losing Your Mind By Michael J. Bradley, Ed.D Shows parents how to harvest strong, self-confident young adults from the overwhelming chaos of adolence, covering topics such as the adolescent brain and development, peer influence, parental examination, parenting rules, and problem-solving strategies.
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Your Kids at Risk: How Teen Sex Threatens Our Sons and Daughters by Meg Meeker, M.D. discusses the epidemic invading our teenage kids– sexually transmitted diseases, in some cases, have increases more than 500% in recent years. Right now, one out of every four sexually active teens is living with an STD! In this book, Dr. Meg Meeker shows us how we can connect with our kids to help save them from this epidemic.
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Parenting Teens With Love and Logic: Preparing Adolescents for Responsible Adulthood by Foster Cline, M.D. and Jim Clay You will learn to love in a healthy way and effectively guide your teen, and they will learn responsibility and the logic of life by solving their own problems and acquiring the tools they’ll need to cope with the real world.
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