Parenting Information

Parenting Your Teenager: How to End the Curfew Battle


Q. Things have been relatively calm and OK with our 16-year-old son so far. Now all of a sudden, there is a huge battle about curfew. He wants to stay out later and later, and we don't think he is ready. How do we set appropriate curfew in our house?

A. Here are a few basic principles on which you and your teen can build:

*Curfew is for the convenience of the parents, not the teens. Parents want to know what time their teens will be home so the parents can sleep when they need to. Be careful not to get this principle turned around the wrong way.

*There should be a later curfew on the weekend than on weeknights.

*One or more evenings should be family nights when everyone is home.

*Sunday nights are not weekend nights, they are school nights.

A Curfew Program You Both Can Handle

Here's how to set up a curfew program that you can live with.

Pick a beginning curfew. Let's say 11 p.m., for example.

Of course, your son will want it to be later. Tell him there is a way to get there and you are going to provide him with a map.

If he honors the 11 p.m. curfew for four months, then he will have earned an additional 15 minutes added to his curfew.

If at any time during the four-month period he comes in late, then the earning period starts all over again the next day.

Choose times and time periods that fit for your family and situation.

The nice thing about this curfew system is that it puts the parents clearly in charge, gives the teen something to work toward, and provides both the parents and the teen clear markers of progress.

Leading parenting expert Jeff Herring is a teen and family therapist, parenting coach, speaker and syndicated parenting and relationship columnist. Jeff invites you to visit ParentingYourTeenager.com for 100's of tips and tools for parenting through the teenage years. You can also subscribe to his f'ree weekly internet newsletter "ParenitngYourTeenager."


MORE RESOURCES:

Media Mogul Tommy Mottola Finds New Star in EEBEE
MarketWatch - 1 hour ago
We're confident that co-parenting this business with Tommy Mottola will bring us to the next level of success." "We are delighted to partner with EVERY BABY ...


WAVY-TV

Beach schools to hold parenting forum
WAVY-TV, VA - 2 hours ago
Parent Connection welcomes the first in a series of guest columnists who will offer insight, research, and commentary on all facets of parenting. ...


Learning Parenting 101: Better Late Than Never
Hartford Courant, United States - Dec 1, 2008
Welcome to Parenting 101, a two-part introduction to the fundamentals of effective child-rearing. Upon passing this course, which will conclude with next ...


Make holidays brighter for children of incarcerated parents, she says
TheTimes, OR - 11 minutes ago
By Kristen Forbes A Parenting Inside Out class graduate poses with her son. She and her two children will be gift recipients at the Center for Family ...


(ie San Francisco hiking, San Francisco parenting)
Examiner.com - 11 hours ago
by Harmon Biehl, Miami Veterans Affairs Examiner Several articles ago I mentioned the length of time it takes for anything to get done with the VA Recently ...


Mothers welcomed to unique parenting support group
Curry County Reporter, OR - 3 hours ago
Gold Beach MOPS meetings are being held on the second Tuesday of every month from 7- 9 pm at the Hound Dog house, located at First Baptist Church of Gold ...


Even In Hard Economic Times, Noted Parenting Expert Urges Couples ...
PR Web (press release), WA - Dec 2, 2008
"Couples who decide to delay marriage and child-bearing, don't fully comprehend the ramifications of their actions," according to parenting expert and ...


ENERGYPARENTING(R) is the Antidote to the ADHD/Ritalin Epidemic
MarketWatch - Dec 2, 2008
It is a new way to parent that upends existing parenting models by transforming challenging children without the need for medication. ...


Obama victory encourages parenting advice
Great Dad, California - 16 hours ago
And yet he's still an excellent parent who finds time for his daughters," he told the news provider. In a speech in Chicago this past Father's Day, ...


The Learning Community Provides Free Parenting Resources Via ...
PR Web (press release), WA - 16 hours ago
The Learning Community, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping parents with free parenting resources, announces the launch of its newly redesigned ...

Parenting - Google News

home | site map
© 2006