Raise Smart Kid

• At this stage, your teenage kid's enrichment of his brain mostly lies in his hand.  You can only guide him and give him advice, but ultimately he is responsible for how he forms his character.
• Teen years are a period of crucial brain development subject to a host of environmental and genetic factors. They are prone to risky behaviors and some of these behaviors have lifelong consequences. Adolescent drinkers, for example, develop profound changes on the genetic expression of releasing stress hormones. They are not able to get used to stressors and have exaggerated response to mild stress. .
• The secret to effectively parenting teens is to be an available parent, someone who “listen[s] with curiosity to their children more than they talk at them, or lecture them,” has “faith in their children’s’ competence... truly want[s] to know their children" and “are never cruel, judgmental or dismissive.” Available parents will “be seen as an advisor and ally, as opposed to the adversary so many of today’s parents are considered by their teenaged children.”
• A new study published in the Journal of Early Adolescence found that dads are in a unique position to instill persistence and hope in their children, particularly in the pre-teen and teen years. Fathers who practiced authoritative parenting, defined as providing feelings of love, granting autonomy and emphasizing accountability to a child, were more likely to have kids who developed the art of persistence, which led to better outcomes in school and lower instances of misbehavior. While that is not to say mothers do not instill these values, men and fathers may take on this role more often because of societal acceptance and expectations. Dads who ruled with an iron fist and an authoritarian style (harsher and more punishment-based parenting) had less persistent children.
• Do not allow your teenager to spend too much time on computers and new technology that shapes his brain to have too short attention span, not being able to concentrate in class, and not being able to sit still long enough to finish homework or plan ahead.

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Educational Toys and Games to Help Make Your Kids Smart