*Some links in this post are affiliate links, please see disclosure below*
The Review Crew is talking about “Under the Stars” this week. My first thought was of course to talk about astronomy or space, but the more I thought about it the more I wanted to go a different direction.
I want to talk to you today about connecting with your teens. As my children have gotten older, life seems to have gotten even busier. I have to make a conscious effort to connect with my children.
What does that have to do with under the stars?
I have found that often the best time to connect with my teens is at night. As they slow down after a long day, they seem to be more ready to talk and open up.
Since we have four children, ranging in age from 15 to 3, night time is also a time when the younger boys are in bed and I can spend more focused time on the teens.
How Do I Connect
First, we love reading together. Sometimes this is me or my husband reading aloud. Other times, we all read the same book on our own time and then use our time together to discuss the book. This might be a non-fiction book like Do Hard Things or it might be a fun novel like when I read the Christy Miller series with my daughter.
Sometimes, it is just a time with special snacks. By special I do not meal expensive or complicated. Just something they enjoy that you can have together while you chat. For example, my son loves root beer floats. Simply scoop the vanilla ice cream into a glass and top with root beer.
If you live in a place where it is safe to walk at night, that can be a lot of fun with teens. You can walk, talk, and look at the stars. Sometimes the act of walking and being side by side and not looking at each other can make your teens feel more comfortable opening up.
Explore a new hobby together. We all have different interests and hobbies, but finding something that you can do together is a great way to connect. My daughter and husband both sew and create our historical costumes. My son joined the Continental Line Unit of our local historical site with my husband and it is a great way for them to connect.
Listen, Listen, Listen: No matter how you are spending your time with them, make sure to focus on listening. Often what they have to say may seem trivial to us, but it is important to them. When we take the time to listen to those things, it encourages them to tell us when there are important or difficult things going on in their lives.
What About Stars?
If you were really hoping for information about stars and astronomy, I have to recommend that you check out Journey Homeschool Academy. They have a fun free summer stargazing course and they also offer full astronomy course for elementary and high school level students. As a bonus to my readers you can use the code: SWAG from July 15th-21st to get 10% any of their courses.
Check out the other Under the Stars Posts by clicking on the graphic below.
Resource Library and Affiliate Disclosure
When you sign up for the Schoolin’ Swag free resource library you will get a link and password to the library, we are adding to the library each month with new items. You will also get a bi-weekly newsletter email to keep you up to date on what we have going on.
This post may contain affiliate or referral links, including Amazon affiliate links. As always I will never recommend a product that I don’t believe in and you will never be charged more for purchasing through our links. It does help pay for the costs associated with the blog.
Deals and Freebies
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The Ultimate Homeschool Bundle is on sale now! For less than $40 you get almost $2000 worth of products from preschool through high school and products for parents. We are excited about the variety and especially excited about some of the bonuses (Bookroo, eguitar course, and more). This sale is only good through July 19th so check it out!
FIT2B is running a great special on their new Perimenopause Course for moms! I am just starting to go through it but there is so much wonderful information, exercise options, and more for that stage of life!
Not Consumed is having a huge back-to-school sale with products up to 25% off. We love their Bible studies. Through 7/19/21
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