Stars: *****
Subtitle: Lessons in Parenting and Personal Growth
Author: Jean-Pierre Kallanian M.Ed.
2014
175 pages
I received this book for review. All opinions are honest.
“What You Can Learn from Your Teenager challenges the overplayed and unjust stereotypes of teenagers being angry, moody, manipulative, and defiant. Rather it encourages parents to look at their teenagers as individuals – and futhermore as an example to sometimes follow. The book provides insights on how to understand the distinct dynamics between adolescents and their parents, sharpen parenting skills, and develop a mutually beneficial relationship.” – About the Book
Unlike other parenting books that just give you advice and then leave you to yourself, this book really makes you think about yourself and your children, the situations you find yourselves in and how all of you are feeling about those situations. When examples are given, footnotes further explain what exactly is happening in each suggested step.
It will take you longer to read this book but it is completely worth it. My kids haven’t quite reached the teen age yet but they are getting there. I will be referring to this book again and again as they age. The unique perspective on teenagers made perfect sense. I can remember being a teenager (I’m 32) and my preteens act like teenagers already in some ways so I can see myself having similar problems and see my kids thinking in similar ways.
We are taught about the acronym EPIC which stands for Explore, Play, Inspire and Connect. At the end of each chapter is a highlight section that reminds us in short form what we just learned which I found very helpful at driving the points home as opposed to just reading it and forgetting it.
“Figuring out exactly what your teenager is having difficulty with may not be as easy as you think. Let’s say that your teen is doing reasonably well academically but suddenly struggling to maintain passing grades. You may start lecturing on the importance of school performance and suspend some privileges when there may be something else going on. Your direct approach may even distance you, because your teen feels that you do not understand and are out to get her.” – pg 64
With regular examples, charts and comparisons, the author really knows his material and helps us learn the points of the book. The website has the table of contents, lesson overviews and excerpts to give you a better idea of it’s style. I recommend it for every parent of teenagers.
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About Kathleen
