Carlos ( 9 years ago )
1. Have an open, honest sytsem where they trust you enough to tell you about their friends, boy/girlfriends, dating and what they are doing with their free time/when they are with friends or romantic interests. In high school, every single one of my friends who had a relationship with their parents like the one I described, waited. The ones who had parents without open communication (regardless of whether they were strict or permissive) did not wait. One girl with particularly strict parents still tells the story of how her boyfriend had to hide under the bed when her mother came home unexpectedly early he hid until it was late enough for her to sneak him out of the house.2. Have this be just another step in the sexual education. You should have been giving age-appropriate books (or having conversations but books tend to be more informative since parents often get flustered) all along. For example, my parents read me a  Where do babies come from?  picture book when I was 3 and my mom was pregnant. They continued giving me books about all aspects of health and sexual education where the material was at an age and developmentally appropriate level. Then they would either read it to me or with me, or let me read it on my own then check with me that I understood it.3. Talk to them but if you don't have the open and honest communication of suggestion 1, this is usually embarrassing. Try talking in such a way that they don't have to look directly at you, e.g. in a car or casually bring it up while baking cookies or playing basketball.4. Give them a college level biology textbook (we used this one Biology, by Raven) and have them read the chapters on viruses, bacteria and protists (which include many parasites). Believe me, we just went through those sections, and it is probably the best way to encourage abstinance (not to mention brushing your teeth, washing your hands and eating properly prepared food) that I've ever seen.

Monika ( 9 years ago )
This is difficult, but have them talk frlknay with someone else who has caught a disease. I have a friend who contracted HIV as a teen. The lover who passed the disease on left them without a single thought. Imagine being a teen with a broken heart, crushed parents and a death sentence because you were in love and trusted your lover. Sticking to using a condom could have saved my friend so much heartache. The drugs it takes to keep this person alive and healthy can cost as much as $5,000 per month! It is very difficult to marry, have a family or hold certain jobs when you have HIV. I know other people who have picked up herpes, the clap and HPV from lovers in the past, or who have gotten pregnant only to be left to raise the child alone. People lie. People can be selfish. Sometimes, people do not even know. People who look healthy and attractive can carry deadly diseases. You must educate yourself and prepare yourself for sexual activity. Just going into a sexually relationship and hoping for the best is dangerous.

Salvatore ( 9 years ago )
GD Star Ratingloading...nice. but i bet welfair pays for the needs.or preans do.. house food. etc and school. i was a teen mom too. But i had to pay my own way thru school & provide. There was no help, ever a mdical card or food stamp or a parent to help. Yes i went to schoool. But kids weaken your teeth. leave stretch marks. ruin your boobs and then suck u dry till? you have nothing else to give and they do this for yrs. If i could go back i would not have kids. i was a good mom , rocking chair mom & loving.GD Star Ratingloading...

Jayanath ( 9 years ago )
1. Have an open, honest sytesm where they trust you enough to tell you about their friends, boy/girlfriends, dating and what they are doing with their free time/when they are with friends or romantic interests. In high school, every single one of my friends who had a relationship with their parents like the one I described, waited. The ones who had parents without open communication (regardless of whether they were strict or permissive) did not wait. One girl with particularly strict parents still tells the story of how her boyfriend had to hide under the bed when her mother came home unexpectedly early he hid until it was late enough for her to sneak him out of the house.2. Have this be just another step in the sexual education. You should have been giving age-appropriate books (or having conversations but books tend to be more informative since parents often get flustered) all along. For example, my parents read me a  Where do babies come from?  picture book when I was 3 and my mom was pregnant. They continued giving me books about all aspects of health and sexual education where the material was at an age and developmentally appropriate level. Then they would either read it to me or with me, or let me read it on my own then check with me that I understood it.3. Talk to them but if you don't have the open and honest communication of suggestion 1, this is usually embarrassing. Try talking in such a way that they don't have to look directly at you, e.g. in a car or casually bring it up while baking cookies or playing basketball.4. Give them a college level biology textbook (we used this one Biology, by Raven) and have them read the chapters on viruses, bacteria and protists (which include many parasites). Believe me, we just went through those sections, and it is probably the best way to encourage abstinance (not to mention brushing your teeth, washing your hands and eating properly prepared food) that I've ever seen.

Maaya ( 9 years ago )
My son was one of the original Dirty Dozen and loved it year after year. They had great scesucs winning hard fought tournaments. Coach Karl is, above all, an excellent teacher. Teaching requires patience and knowledge and Karl provides both. He instilled discipline in his team in a way that made them enjoy being part of team. Good luck to the next dozen, you’re in for the ride of your life.

Sergio ( 9 years ago )
My son was one of the original Dirty Dozen and loved it year after year. They had great suseccs winning hard fought tournaments. Coach Karl is, above all, an excellent teacher. Teaching requires patience and knowledge and Karl provides both. He instilled discipline in his team in a way that made them enjoy being part of team. Good luck to the next dozen, you’re in for the ride of your life.

Eleonor ( 10 years ago )
My son was one of the original Dirty Dozen and loved it year after year. They had great succses winning hard fought tournaments. Coach Karl is, above all, an excellent teacher. Teaching requires patience and knowledge and Karl provides both. He instilled discipline in his team in a way that made them enjoy being part of team. Good luck to the next dozen, you’re in for the ride of your life.

Stella ( 10 years ago )
My son was one of the original Dirty Dozen and loved it year after year. They had great sucsecs winning hard fought tournaments. Coach Karl is, above all, an excellent teacher. Teaching requires patience and knowledge and Karl provides both. He instilled discipline in his team in a way that made them enjoy being part of team. Good luck to the next dozen, you’re in for the ride of your life.

Jordana ( 10 years ago )
Interesting topic  even more interesting is osivrebng the reactions some teens have when it comes to child birth. At this age(teens), having a child should be the last thing on our minds, first before anything should be our education. I see teenage mothers/fathers or mothers/fathers-soon-to-be all the time walking the halls of VHS and I pity them. Either they purposely wanted a child for some bizarre reason or they made some bad choices when it came to contraception. Those are 2 types of teenage pregnancies, now here are the 2 types of teenage parent: either a ghettolicious hot mama and papa whom after high believe to live(mooch) off their parents and/or grandparents until the day they die  or decide to contribute to society. Teen Parent number 2 is: the hopeful, ambitious, and  smart  student who dreams of doing something his/her life and yet one day decided to experiment with sex and ignorantly f%$^ed their lives up. In conclusion, if you are dumb enough to make such a decision such as unsafe sex then you don't need a parental chat  you need a reality check, loser. ;]PS; thank you Beth for such a good topic.

Chimbitas ( 10 years ago )
Interesting topic  even more interesting is obiervsng the reactions some teens have when it comes to child birth. At this age(teens), having a child should be the last thing on our minds, first before anything should be our education. I see teenage mothers/fathers or mothers/fathers-soon-to-be all the time walking the halls of VHS and I pity them. Either they purposely wanted a child for some bizarre reason or they made some bad choices when it came to contraception. Those are 2 types of teenage pregnancies, now here are the 2 types of teenage parent: either a ghettolicious hot mama and papa whom after high believe to live(mooch) off their parents and/or grandparents until the day they die  or decide to contribute to society. Teen Parent number 2 is: the hopeful, ambitious, and  smart  student who dreams of doing something his/her life and yet one day decided to experiment with sex and ignorantly f%$^ed their lives up. In conclusion, if you are dumb enough to make such a decision such as unsafe sex then you don't need a parental chat  you need a reality check, loser. ;]PS; thank you Beth for such a good topic.