Good Morning! Here’s the Monday Morning Blog!
Did you get a chance to touch base with that teen or young adult in your life last week? Ask them what they think about getting involved in an activity. Something that may be of interest to them. It will not only keep them busy over the summer but may lead to them learning about themselves and meeting others.
June’s Theme – Teen Organizations
There are many benefits to being involved in organizations. You can meet people from schools other than your own. You can volunteer and give your time and energy to a cause that is important to you. And you can make a difference in the community in which you live.
According to the United Way website, there are five benefits of Teen Volunteering.
Increase self-esteem
Gain more empathy
Become a stronger college applicant
Build long-term generosity
Earn better grades
Along with those benefits, being involved in teen organizations is a great way to network with teens and adults who have the same passions for the causes that you do. You may find a mentor through being involved who may help you to succeed.
This month I am going to focus on the benefits of being involved teen organizations. Check out my mentor page and see how I am doing it Selma P. Verde – Mentor Page
What can involvement do for you?
Your teen may ask, what does joining a group do for me? Some of the benefits of involvement have been mentioned above by the United Way website. But there are others. Teen organizations provide a great way to put idle time over the summer to a productive use. They can bring people together and help your teen meet other people interested in the same things they are that may live in other communities or be from different cultures. And both of these reasons will lead to your teen learning about and bettering themselves.
Putting idle time to good use
Without school being in session during the summer, it would be great that teens have something productive to take up that now available time. Sure, we want them to have time to hang out with their friends and take a break from the school schedule but using some of that time to better themselves and give back to the community would be a great use of their time.
Meeting others with the same passions and interests
When a group of people get together with a common goal, things can get accomplished. When you find other people that share your thoughts and vision, it helps you feel less alone or thinking that you are the only one who feels that way.
Getting involved in a teen organization will also help them to meet new people from local communities and other cultures. The fact that that have a shared interest, will be a great topic to start getting to know them and learn more about them and the culture they may be from, which may be different from their own.
Bettering themselves
Working with other people is a skill that we all must learn in life as things we achieve will not always be done by ourselves. It is not only found in sports, but also getting together and putting on an event for people in need can show us how our skills and talents can be put to good use. You may also learn about a talent that you never thought you had by working with others.
It is always hard to determine how getting involved in groups will help you better yourself. This is something that is commonly figured out after one has been involved for a while or has completed a big project through the group. But know that it takes courage to join a group. And the effects of others on your coming of age as a teen will help you learn about them and about yourself.
What can adults do to help them get involved?
Sometimes teens will need a little help to see the benefits of getting involved and need the adults in their lives give them a little nudge towards something they seem interested in or good at. Here are a couple of ways for you find out what they might be interested in.
Check with their teachers
When our teens are at school, they can act different than they do at home. Their teachers may see some potential in them that we as parents do not see. Check with them and see if there is a subject at school that they tend to do well in or something they may be talking about getting involved in at school that you aren’t hearing about at home.
Watch and listen to your teen for ideas
Sometimes teens won’t tell us what they want to do. They have a hard time sharing with adults sometimes but really want to get involved. So take the time to watch for things your teen seems to like to do or talk about wanting to do. It may provide great insight into great ideas of things for them to pursue.
They sometimes need encouragement to get involved. They may be afraid that their friends will see it as dumb that they want to get involved in an organization and not just hang out with them. If your teen comes to with an idea of an organization they would like to try out, be supportive and help them sign up and get there. By doing this, we reinforce their choices and courage to take the chance to try it.
What Teen Organizations are out there?
There are many different teen organizations out there. Some of them are sports related, like a soccer team or a golf team. Some are activities like a video game club or a speaker’s group. And some are community involvement or a gathering of like minds towards a cause. If you don’t already have a group in mind, search online for groups that are available locally and virtually.
Is your teen already involved in an organization or activity over the summer? Let me know in the comments below.
Shawn’s Way is about being a target of a bully
Shawn’s Way is the second book in The Way Series. It is the story of Shawn Townson and his navigating through being a target of a bully, who happens to play baseball with his older brother Caleb. Pick up a copy and find out how he reaches out a teen organization called Teens Helping Teens (THT). They have a teen hotline for teens to talk to about what he they are going through. Click on the link below the photo to get your own copy.
