5 Ways to Connect with Your Teenagers

This post is by Jennifer Wagner of Connect with your Teens through Pop Culture and Technology.

When children begin to approach their teenage years, parents often begin to lose the closeness they so cherish. Friends become extremely important in the lives of teens—so much so that parents can have trouble carving out any quality family time anymore.

What can you do if this is happening to you? Your teenager is much more apt to find time for conversation if you can talk about his or her likes. Keep up with current teen trends—specifically your teen’s favorites—and it will open up doors to a whole new type of bonding.

Here are five tips for connecting with your teens.

Television

Instead of complaining about the amount of TV your teens are watching, start watching some of their favorite shows—especially the types that lends themselves to discussion. For six years, my teenage sons and I spent hours weekly having the best talks about the ABC series Lost. With all the mysteries and mythology, it was the perfect show for family viewing.

Books

Series work best, because the discussions can go on and on. The Harry Potter series can start in childhood and be read through the teen years.  This series brought my family together for years. Moms and daughter can definitely bond over the Twilight series and older teens and parents should definitely get on board with the hot new series, The Hunger Games.

Music

Parents already have a head start since both of our generations have a common love of rock music. However, you may think you are going to hate many of the other genres of music your teen tries. You don’t have to like them, but always be willing to give their music a try. My son turned my husband and I on to an indie group called Portugal. The Man. It turns out that they sound very much like The Beatles and we are now big fans.

Gadgets and technology

If your teens prefer text messaging to phone calls, learn how to text. If they prefer instant messaging to email, learn to IM. Communicate with them the way they are used to communicating and they will be much quicker to respond.

Video games

Do you keep up with new advances in video games and the games your teens like to play? Do you play any games yourself? Even if you can’t play the heavy duty RPG (role playing games) or fighting games, why not get some exercise, dance, or trivia games you can play with the family? Even playing games on Facebook or mobile apps will give you something to discuss with your teens.

These suggestions are not going to keep your teenagers from wanting to spend most of their time with their friends. However, when they are home, they might be more apt to come out of their rooms because they can look forward to fun things to do and talk about with you. What tips can you add to this list from your own experience? I’d love to hear them in the comments.

Jennifer Wagner is the creator and author of the blog, Connect with your Teens through Pop Culture and Technology.  She also has a second blog, My Recommended Websites, contributes articles to Technorati, Blogcritics, and the Yahoo Motherboard, and is a Lifetime Mom.