Teen pregnancy in the news, again...

By now, you've probably heard that the Republican VP candidate (Sarah Palin) has a 17 year old daughter who is pregnant. I've posted on this topic before here, and I encourage you to check out that older post, because it defines & discussed teachable moments in greater detail.

But for today's purposes, I just want to remind parents of school-aged kids that this is a great opportunity for you to connect with your child on a delicate & important topic. Ask your child if they've heard the news... ask what they think... ask if anyone they know knows a teen parent... talk about how this reminds us that teen pregnancy can occur in any & every home (even the governor's mansion!) Maybe you'll even get to talk about how teen pregnancy can be avoided. But no matter what comes of the conversation, if you will just have a conversation about this with your child (where you do a little more listening than talking) you'll be demonstrating again and again what an askable parent you are.

Jamie and the teachable moment, take two

Several months back I wrote a post about teachable moments, specifically citing Jamie Lynn Spear's pregnancy as a golden opportunity for parents to talk to their kids about sex (and pregnancy, and their family values, etc.) Click here to read that post in its entirety.

Today's news tells us that Jamie has had her baby. To Ms. Spears (and all new mothers,) I say: congratulations. And to the mothers who read this blog, I say: Here's another chance! Talk with your kids! Ask them if they'd heard about the birth. Are their friends talking about it? How does your child feel about teen pregnancy? Talk talk talk. Ask ask ask. Listen Listen Listen. Don't let this fabulous opportunity pass you by.

What is a Teachable Moment? (or, Did you hear about Jamie Lynn Spears?)

Sometimes, life presents you with openings—an engraved invitation, if you will, to share information or values with your children. These golden opportunities are what we call “teachable moments.” Sometimes they present themselves because your child asks a question or makes a statement, particularly when those statements are incorrect or contrary to your values. Other times, our teachable moments arrive via the media. These teachable moments can be especially useful, because (a) there are so many of them, and (b) they rarely reflect your family values. It’s a never-ending source of “Let’s talk about this!” moments.

This brings me to Jamie Lynn Spears, Britney Spears’ 16 year old younger sister. Do you know that she’s pregnant? Your school-aged kids probably do. She announced her pregnancy in a tabloid magazine a month or so ago. I want to propose that you consider the media coverage of her pregnancy a very useful teachable moment.