One of the most difficult moments as a parent or caregiver of a teenager is when he or she betrays a trust, lies, cheats, steals or violates a cherished family value. Parents often feel like they have failed as parents and can quickly give up hope that their teenager will become a person of integrity.
How to Help Teens Grow Morally
Parents and caregivers, are you concerned about some of the moral decisions of teenagers? It can be very scary to listen to the values and language, or witness attitudes and behaviors that characterize our teenagers. Some parents become concerned because they fail to see family values demonstrated, which they believe they have modeled and taught their to their children. […]
Words of Appreciation
A special message from the President and CEO of Lakeside Educational Network… I sit in a unique position. I watch incredible staff, who are whole-heartedly committed to teenagers, give their time, skills and giftedness to the students who are referred to Lakeside Educational Network.
Giving Thanks for Our Teenagers
This is a week where we stop to give thanks for the many blessings that we are privileged to have in our lives. It is a special time of thinking through all of the good things that we possess and can celebrate.
Effective Discipline for Teenagers
I recently wrote about how important it is to allow teenagers to make amends and regain trust when they have violated a rule or broken trust. In our many years of working with thousands of teenagers at Lakeside, we have had to deal with numerous discipline issues within their lives.
Helping Teenagers Make Amends
We have been discussing the topic of bullying and its significant impact. We have also acknowledged that teenagers are in a maturation process that has many ebbs and flows. Usually, teens will have a lack of awareness of the consequences of their behaviors–even bullying–that may have a negative impact on others. Therefore, what do teenagers do when […]
A Bullycide Tragedy: Brandon Bitner
I have been writing about the topic of bullying. In my last post, I wrote about Bullycide. This phenomenon describes incidents in which someone who is bullied commits suicide. Unfortunately, just as I was writing about bullycide, Brandon Bitner, another teenager committed suicide. His family, friends and most of the information surrounding his life point to the reason […]
Bullycide: When Bullying Causes Suicide
We have been discussing the impact of bullying on adolescents. Bullying can leave devastating social and psychological consequences on a teenager that can be life-dominating. Derogatory labels placed on our teenagers can leave them with emotional scars that may change the course of their lives. Guilt, shame, embarrassment, humiliation and depression are all part of the affects […]
Cyberbullying: 24/7 Harassment
Research is diverse, but conservative estimates suggest that at least 10 percent of teenagers between 7th and 9th grades experience some form of cyberbullying. Cyberbullying: literally, the act that’s difficult to follow
Innocent Bystander? Bullying as Peer Pressure
Recently I wrote about the normal ages and stages of adolescent development. If you read those posts, you may remember that as teenagers mature, their loyalty moves from their parents to their peers, with peer relationships becoming increasingly more important. Though acceptance from peer groups becomes principal in your teen’s life, the association can lead to undesirable […]
