One of the primary goals of family life education and a underlying facet of Bridge 45 is to impart skills and information for parents benefit. Knowledge of certain trends and theories applicable to children will give parents tools for day to day living. Here are a few topics I would like to familiarize parents with in a class that will be given in late October.
Tweenagers are in the transitory period of life Erik Erikson identified as a crisis of competence. This is a struggle to determine whether an individual will display industry or inferiority when approaching life skills and issues of competence. What the child has to discover for themselves is “am I good at what I do?” Not that any one role in life will be permanently established, but when new skills are tackled, does the child have the wherewithal to master them? During this time the child compares their self worth to other peers. The classroom environment is critical to self understanding. Teachers and parents wield tremendous power and must ensure children do not feel inferior. Expect children at this age to become infatuated with learning, perhaps not school, but some subject, hobby or other passion will manifest.
In addition to this key developmental data I would like parents to know what their children face in the world. I want them to see the host of social forces and personal challenges that tweens will encounter. God cares deeply about what each person faces in their daily life, not just what happens on Sunday morning. I hope to impart views of parenting and youth as vocations.
The class will be short. My message to parents is get involved, be aware, take action, and raise children in a Godly home. Often the simple messages are what we need to hear most.
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