So, I've been busy at CONvergence, indulging in discussions of all the geeky things I enjoy. But what I really found interesting today were the panels on "Growing Up Geek" and "Raising Your Teen Geek".
Reagan of course, is the closest I have to a teenager. He's a tween, and the teens are coming quicker than I'd like. But I'm already seeing the issues popping up. When your child's interests aren't mainstream, how do you let them know they're not alone? How do you keep them encouraged and social? How do you continue to nurture their passions without letting them become obsessions? There was much discussed, and much still to think about.
Tomorrow maybe. I must be getting old. I got tired way too fast!
I'm looking forward to hearing what you learned...sounds interesting!
ReplyDeleteok, we are living parallel lives on this one. My boy is 12 and I was having some of the same thoughts today.
ReplyDeleteHappy 4th of July my friend!
~Julie
This is where being a youth worker makes issues like this easier. At my last project if we had a young person who had an interest that wasn't mainstream I would spend time, talk to them, get them to explain it to me, I would ask questions. Even if it was the most tedious thing in the world (on of my young people loved snails!) I would give them attention and allow them to shine for the time we were talking.
ReplyDeleteIf other young people gave them a hard time I would challenge them on their hobbies, some didn't have any, other than watching TV (not much of a hobby in my opinion unless you want to go into media, most of my teenagers didn't).
I would then look on google to see if there were any local groups or chat boards that could help them.
It is easier to do that as a youth worker. I remember as a teenager if my mother tried to be interested in what I was interested in I felt embarressed.
I wish you well, and hope you manage this.
All my prayers
Spike