COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES FOR TEENS
Belfast and the surrounding towns have diverse activities, lessons, sports and dramatic arts that your child might enjoy. Listed below are places for teens where learning,growth and fun can take place. Many of them have web sites that you can visit for more information.
Family Swim: Belfast Area High School and YMCA
4-H Club 1-800-287-1426
Lasansky School of Dance 236-3685
People to People Dance Co 236-2395
The Playhouse Theatre Belfast 338-5777
Tanglewood 4-H winter/spring school vacation camp 789-5868
Some suggested links for parents-just click on the subject you want
Helping Middle School Students Make the Transition into High School
Some helpful and informative books for parents of teens
DavidElkind
This book spotlights the pressures on teenagers to grow up quickly and the resulting problems, ranging from common alienation to self-destructive behavior. Quoting teenagers themselves, Elkind shows why adolescence is a time of thinking in a new key, and how young people need this time to get used to the social and emotional changes their new thinking brings. The book helps parents to understand teens in crucial ways because the root of so many adolescent frictions is the gap between what teenagers need and what our culture provides.Â
1997, Perseus Books
Bria Simpson
You can be a great mom and still have a life of your own. Your kids will only benefit from seeing you as a whole person and will develop greater independence and a stronger sense of who they are as people. This book offers dozens of simple tips to help you maintain strong relationships with your kids and live your life in ways that reflecty your true values.Â
2006, New Harbinger
Haim Ginott
This valuable book continues to be one of the most useful books for parents who want to communicate more effectively with their teenagers. Ginott describes common- sense solutions for parents who are having difficulty understanding and communicating with their teenagers. The book also usefully addresses parents’ greatest challenge: to let go when they want to hold on.Â
1988, Avon Books
Debra Haffner and Alyssa Tartaglion
The authors urge parents to keep the lines of communication constantly open with their children and to utilize “teachable moments”rather than having the one traditional “big talk” about sex. The book includes sections on early, middle, and later adolescent development. The discussion of birth control points out that parents can discourage kids from having sex while at the same time advocating safe sex. The book also addresses internet use, sexual harassment, and body image concerns.Â
2002, New Market Press
Jack Canfield et. al.
This book contains stories, poems, and cartoons relating to the specific troubles that traumatize teenagers everywhere. Much of the book is written by teens themselves which gives it a very accessible and informal tone. The book is always respectful and does not minimize any of the dramas of adolescence. It contains important lessons on the nature of friendship and love, the importance of belief in the future, and the value of respect for oneself and others.Â
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