But today even the pre teens do not care much about what their parents have to say. By the time your child is 10-11 he/she will start caring more the opinion of his/her friend that you. As long as the caring remains in acceptable limits it does no harm but these days peer pressure gets too much to handle at times.
As an educated and modern parent discussions and threats do not work for as, nor would we want them to come to that. So what should you do to ensure that you and your opinion hold its ground in your child’s opinion? To ensure that your child is not giving in to every demand put on him/her by his/her peer group.
As a parent share with them following things:
- Friends are Fun: Discuss with them that as they grow the importance and value of friends will increase for them. It’s good to have ‘good’ friend. Share subtle stories with them that show the changes that can be brought in life as per the choice of friends.
- Discuss peer pressure: Talking to them about peer pressure is crucial at this age to help them understand when to follow and when to lead in a situation. Use examples of situations that might occur when you may not be around.
- Develop strong moral foundation: Your child must have a strong sense of good and bad, right and wrong about different things he/she may encounter around him/her. It will not come with discussions alone. You are the role model. Through your actions let your child see the importance of being a good person.
- Develop camaraderie: Make sure that you discuss all age appropriate topics with your child. Discuss that he/she must feel free to share the knowledge that he/she already has about a certain topic. Your child must feel free to ask any question that comes to his/her mind.
Once your child develops a strong connect with you and has basic understanding of right and wrong, he/she will find it easier to deal with peer pressure. He/she must know that friends are fun and important for life but they are not the whole life.
Guest Author
The author is renowned career counselor with experience of counselling thousands of students all across country. He has given many programs on careers on radio and television etc. He has helped thousands of students in shaping up their future and careers.He is the Founder and CEO of Students Destination.com
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