Staying Connected with Your Tween

by Rene Syler (Subscribe to Rene Syler's posts) Dec 17th 2008 3:00PM

ParentDish is pleased to welcome Rene Syler to our team. Rene hosted CBS news' The Early Show from 2002 - 2006; she is the author of The Good Enough Mother, and is currently at work on her second book. You can spend more time with Rene at her web site.

Comments (2)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Jan Bay 12-17-2008 @ 7:56PM

After spending the afternoon with my niece, I can say that talking alone does not seem to do the trick. They tune you out and respond in one syllable at best.

I came up with some fun things to do and THEN we started to connect. She actually made a few sentences and I did my best not to seem thrilled. Not a super example of interaction, but she smiled a couple of times and hugged me when she left.

They are under such pressure to be cool which in tween speak seems to mean detached and untouchable.

Jan from http://www.unique-baby-gear-ideas.com/

Laurie Leverington 1-08-2009 @ 9:44AM

I'm a single mom of a 16 yr old boy, and I have to say we talk a lot, argue a lot, have rules, rules are broken, there are consequences, and that's just the tip of the iceburg. I think single moms of boys have more difficulty because of the man/woman role issues. It's difficult to find a balance because guys don't want to be bossed around by a woman. Period. So any method of trying to enforce rules is met with the attitude of "you can't make me (becuase I'm bigger/stronger than you). It can be very frustrating!

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