At the start of the school year, friends old and new will walk into your teens’ lives. They’ll make memories together and share new experiences.
If you’ve been considering hosting your teens, you should. Hosting your teens and their friends is important, both for your relationship with your kids and for their friendships.
Here's why:
1. You can get to know their friends.
If you want to know who your teens are hanging out with, invite them over! Start with small interactions and build up to larger ones, such as shared meals or game nights, to learn more about their personalities and understand why your teens connected with them. Being attentive to their relationships can lead to more informed conversations with your teens.
2. You can observe their interactions.
When your teens and their friends are spending time together at your house, observe how they interact with one another. Whether you’re nearby or taking part in one of their shared activities, you can listen to their exchanges and take cues from body language. Monitoring their interactions can help you understand their friends’ influence and explain any positive or negative effects on your teens’ behaviors.
3. Your home is a safe environment.
When your teens and their friends are under your supervision in your home, they’re less likely to find trouble. Hosting can be an opportunity to set healthy expectations and make them feel comfortable in their surroundings. They’re free to laugh, be themselves, and most importantly, enjoy time together in a safe environment.
4. You can get to know their parents.
When you get to know your teens’ friends, you can get to know their parents, too. If their kids regularly see yours, exchange numbers. Making small talk during drop offs can help to establish a relationship that can shed light on any behaviors you’re seeing in their children. Bonding with other parents can also help you align on consistent messages and boundaries for teens.
Visit the Connecting page to learn more about positive teen interaction.
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