The art of communication is an essential skill that your Tween has to develop as they grow into adulthood. It is a skill that also affects many aspects of their behavior. It can help them develop their own self-confidence, better communicate their problems, and help them face their peers. This skill is developed through the practice of having conversations face to face rather than through texting. There are a couple of ways that you can help your Tween with their basic communication skills.
The first way is to drop the texting when at home. This is a rule that should apply to everybody in the home. While it is often easier to pick up the phone rather than walk to a different room to have a conversation, this effort should be made by everyone. By practicing face to face communication at home, your tween is less likely to go into their own little shell at home. This also helps them become more involved in the family because you are addressing them as part of the family rather than sending them a message that can’t convey emotions. It can also help them develop their own self-confidence because they are being included as a part of the family.
Another way to help with communicating is to take them on a phone-free vacation. Of course, this also means that everybody in the family should also go phone-free in the sense that the phones stay off during the trip from the beginning to the end. This phone-free vacation will help your tween with learning how to verbalize their emotions and contribute to the family discussions while on the trip. This will also present different opportunities for conversational practice that they may not have at home. Listening to stories or telling the stories themselves is a way to get them engaged in practicing.
Conversing with their friends is becoming a lost art. So, it is important to encourage the face to face communication when their friends are around. Engaging in face to face communication with their friends can help build their self-esteem around others. Encouraging them to engage rather than text their thoughts will also help them think about what they really want to say. This can help build stronger friendships in the long run.
The art of communication is a skill that has to be practiced to be refined. While texting has its place, it is also important that Tweens learn how to engage in a face to face conversation. Learning this skill can help them build up their self-confidence and help them better communicate their needs and desires. This skill is something that will help them in the future as well. So, taking time outs with the texting now is a good way to get them to understand that texting isn’t their only means of communicating.