What does your teen do?

[Pembo]

Just wondering if a statement a teacher made to me is true..What does your teen do after school or on the weekends? I don't want to hear about jobs, sports, school related activities. I want to hear about if they stay home, if they go places with friends, if they are on the computer...

UPDATE: We were discussing with the teacher our concerns that our ds doesn't socialize outside of school, at all. The teacher later told us that he took a poll at school and the teens he talked to don't either. They spend most of their time alone.

I thought the norm was teens wanting to be with other teens...thus this thread.

fwiw-ds has Aspergers Syndrome so we are not sure if he really does just want to be alone or if he needs some help initiating contact outside of school.

 

[JoiseyMom]

Just wondering if a statement a teacher made to me is true..What does your teen do after school or on the weekends? I don't want to hear about jobs, sports, school related activities. I want to hear about if they stay home, if they go places with friends, if they are on the computer...

DD14 is a freshman in HS. On weekends she either hangs out with friends, sometimes goes to the movies (afternoon). Most of the time she is home, she is reading (loves it), texting (constantly), watches TV, computer (Utube) and video games. WHen I am lucky she cleans her room and does her laundry. Oh and her favorite pastime...fighting withher little brother!

 

[NHdisneylover]

DD14 is in ninth grade. When not at scouts or karate:

Once or twice a week she hangs out downtown with friends. They usually go to the library, a pastry shop, music store and bookstore. When the weather is nice the also walk in the park and some public gardens.

She is home most other nights. She reads a lot, watches some TV online and goes on the DIS and email and once in a while feels like she has to check in on facebook (once or twice a week, grudgingly--she is weird kid in that way). We also watch movies together on DVD, She sews and works on craft projects. In nice weather she does lots of roller blading and some bike riding.

ON weekends she has a friend overnight about every other weekend. Other than that, she ten to want to hang out at home if we are just running to the store or going downtown or whatnot--she enjoys having time to herself at home. She also loves to cook and often makes a fw new recipes or old standbys.

 

[SaraJayne]

I couldn't pick two choices.

He's either playing Xbox online with friends or hanging out with friends.

 

[OceanAnnie]

I don't have teens. I'm just wondering what the teacher told you. I'll check back later.

 

[mjkacmom]

Dd is with her friends every day after school, and at night on the weekends. She is out with them some weeknights (basketball games, hockey games), and when she's home, she is usually doing homework, or videochatting with her friends. She does watch TV, but doesn't play videogames.

 

[SC Minnie]

DD16 is a junior. She does have a job but only works a couple of hours Sat night. Other than that she is either doing homework, watching movies, or chatting with friends.

 

[NHdisneylover]

I answered before the poll went up. I can't vote anyway as you can only chose one thing. DD14 does not care much for video games (her 12 year old brother does though) but otherwise she does both of the other choices and lots of "other"

I too am curious as to what the teacher told you.

 

[Pembo]

I don't have teens. I'm just wondering what the teacher told you. I'll check back later.

The teacher told us that teens spend most of their time at home doing things alone.

 

[mjkacmom]

Oh, and since ds is a month away from being a teen, he plays video games online, alone or "live" with friends, has friends over, goes over friends' homes, bikes with them, texts, and oovoo's. And does homework, watches TV, and plays sports with his brother if the weather cooperates (basketball, baseball, soccer, or football).

 

[MushyMushy]

My DD is 15 and in 9th grade. When she's home, she either watches youtube videos, tries out new makeup or hair styles, watches tv, or talks my ear off about boys.

 

[mjkacmom]

The teacher told us that teens spend most of their time at home doing things alone.

That's not my experience. Dd14 lives and breathes her friends, and ds12 would rather be with his friends than with us (although he still likes us - dd tolerates us - my mom assures me I was the same way, and became "normal" again when I went off to college).

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Just wondering if a statement a teacher made to me is true..What does your teen do after school or on the weekends? I don't want to hear about jobs, sports, school related activities. I want to hear about if they stay home, if they go places with friends, if they are on the computer...

All of the above, so I did not vote.

Mainly 14yodd is either sleeping, eating, on her computer or sleeping or eating. Toss in the occasional homework and chores in there.

Today she is having a friend over to spend the night and they will be eating and on the computer and maybe play video games. The jury is still out on sleep.

I do know that her friend will be using dd's computer to do her homework since they do not have one.

 

[OceanAnnie]

The teacher told us that teens spend most of their time at home doing things alone.

I can see where she might be getting at "balance". Was that her point?

After being around people all day long at school, what is wrong with down time? Most adults need to decompress, kids of all ages do too.

 

[Pembo]

I can see where she might be getting at "balance". Was that her point?

After being around people all day long at school, what is wrong with down time? Most adults need to decompress, kids of all ages do too.

Our ds spends most of his time home alone and has little interest in socializing outside school. The teacher told us that most kids don't socialize outside of school activities. I thought he was wrong.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Our ds spends most of his time home alone and has little interest in socializing outside school. The teacher told us that most kids don't socialize outside of school activities. I thought he was wrong.

I guess you should nickname him the "Bill Rafferty from Card Sharks".

You should have thrown back "Well I think maybe that number is lower and I would say 30% of the kids are home alone".

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

I know you didn't want to hear about jobs and sports, but my DD15 has a part time job (ski instructor), and takes 7 dance classes a week. Other times of the year, she works more (vacations), and runs cross-country. So, she's not home a whole lot.

She hangs out after school for about an hour with her friends, then walks home. Sometimes, a friend or three come with her. Or, she hangs out with friends at her dance studio until class time.

When she's home and awake for a couple hours, she's either on the computer (Facebook, Skype, a few other sites), or she's doing homework while watching TV. Sometimes, she'll read or watch a DVD in her room.

DS13 would play videogames in one form or another until his eyes bled.

 

[java]

My teen spends time doing all of the above. He also hangs with us sometimes.

 

[2girlsmom]

Mine talks on the phone, on facebook, watches tv and plays video/computer games after school. We live in the country, and there aren't any of her friends close enough to go there during the week. On the weekends, however, we go out to dinner as a family and usually with friends, she bowls on a league with friends, and she usually has someone over to our house or is spending the night with someone about every 3rd weekend.

 

[Magpie]

Well, the teacher would be speaking the truth is she said that about ME, when I was a teenager in the 80's. I spent a lot of time alone on my bedroom floor, with the door closed, reading and listening to music. I never went anywhere. It drove my mom nuts, because she thought there was something wrong with me.

My kids, however? Not so much.

My 13yo son just called to tell me he's not coming home tonight, because he's going to stay a friend's house. That's pretty typical for a Friday. As long as he makes it to church, music lessons, gets his papers delivered, gets all his homework done, and manages any other commitments (like any concerts he's supposed to play in), I'm happy. When he IS home, he's often downstairs on the Xbox, playing with his friends.

My 15yo daughter is home with us a lot more, but I can't say she's ever alone. She mostly hangs out in the living room with her dad, her grandma and me. She reads and kibitzes with us about what's on TV. If she wants to "be alone", she'll listen to her iPod, still parked in the living room with us.

It can make having private adult conversations a little bit difficult.

Maybe the teacher is remembering her own teenage years? In any case, I think it depends on the child and their personality.