A book for teachers and leaders of tweens with articles on spirituality and specific activities to nourish spiritual habits in preteens through Sunday school, worship, and other church settings. Included is a photocopiable section for leaders to use with parents to help parents understand what is appropriate in the spiritual realm for their preteens. Includes activities that can be used within existing programs, ideas for including preteens fully in the life of the entire congregation, details on how to form a "Buddy Class" with another church group, and provides suggestions for teaching tweens how to actively participate in leading group worship experiences. Click here for more information about Tweens curriculum. For updated information and fun for your Tweens, visit us online at www.tweenslive.com.
In innumerable discussions and activities dedicated to better understanding and helping teenagers, one aspect of teenage life is curiously overlooked. Very few such efforts pay serious attention to the role of religion and spirituality in the lives of American adolescents. But many teenagers are very involved in religion. Surveys reveal that 35% attend religious services weekly and another 15% attend at least monthly. 60% say that religious faith is important in their lives. 40% report that they pray daily. 25% say that they have been "born again." Teenagers feel good about the congregations they belong to. Some say that faith provides them with guidance and resources for knowing how to live well. What is going on in the religious and spiritual lives of American teenagers? What do they actually believe? What religious practices do they engage in? Do they expect to remain loyal to the faith of their parents? Or are they abandoning traditional religious institutions in search of a new, more authentic "spirituality"? This book attempts to answer these and related questions as definitively as possible. It reports the findings of The National Study of Youth and Religion, the largest and most detailed such study ever undertaken. The NYSR conducted a nationwide telephone survey of teens and significant caregivers, as well as nearly 300 in-depth face-to-face interviews with a sample of the population that was surveyed. The results show that religion and spirituality are indeed very significant in the lives of many American teenagers. Among many other discoveries, they find that teenagers are far more influenced by the religious beliefs and practices of their parents and caregivers than commonly thought. They refute the conventional wisdom that teens are "spiritual but not religious." And they confirm that greater religiosity is significantly associated with more positive adolescent life outcomes. This eagerly-awaited volume not only provides an unprecedented understanding of adolescent religion and spirituality but, because teenagers serve as bellwethers for possible future trends, it affords an important and distinctive window through which to observe and assess the current state and future direction of American religion as a whole.
The DBT Skills Workbook for Teens - HARDBACK COLOR EDITION! Dialectical Behavior Therapy has helped millions of teenagers since it was developed just over 30 years ago! Adolescence is a crucial period for developing and maintaining social and emotional habits essential for mental well-being. The problem is this is easier said than done. Considering all the distractions and peer pressure our teens deal with that we did not have when we were their age, how can we help them? The techniques taught in DBT can make your teen's journey into adulthood a lot smoother. Imagine your teen had all the skills necessary for: Coping with stressful times like exams. Balancing powerful feelings and emotions in an effective way Navigating interpersonal relationships effectively Overcoming rejections and failures Developing mindfulness to stay focused in the moment Life skills to become confident and resilient Anger management skills Accepting themself and their current situation Well, the DBT skills workbook for teens teaches all of these skills that are simple yet effective! In case you were wondering, DBT is a form of therapy that helps people find the balance between accepting themselves and changing what they don't like about themselves. Sounds sweet? The DBT skills workbook for teens is a FUN, ENGAGING and GAMIFIED experience, precisely what keeps today's distracted teens motivated to do the work. That is already half the battle won!
In The Spiritual Child, psychologist Lisa Miller presents the next big idea in psychology: the science and the power of spirituality. She explains the clear, scientific link between spirituality and health and shows that children who have a positive, active relationship to spirituality: * are 40% less likely to use and abuse substances * are 60% less likely to be depressed as teenagers * are 80% less likely to have dangerous or unprotected sex * have significantly more positive markers for thriving including an increased sense of meaning and purpose, and high levels of academic success. Combining cutting-edge research with broad anecdotal evidence from her work as a clinical psychologist to illustrate just how invaluable spirituality is to a child's mental and physical health, Miller translates these findings into practical advice for parents, giving them concrete ways to develop and encourage their children's—as well as their own—well-being. In this provocative, conversation-starting book, Dr. Miller presents us with a pioneering new way to think about parenting our modern youth.
Almost 200 entries tell the colorful stories of 347 Jesuit saints and martyrs. The brief biographies are arranged by calendar date and highlight significant information that reveals what it means to be a Jesuit and what it means to be saintly. This 1998 edition includes revised text, new indexes, and is illustrated with rare 17th century engravings.
"Hands down my favorite book for teen girls." Rosaria Butterfield, author, The Gospel Comes with a House Key Your teen years matter. Of all the ways you're learning and changing during the busy teenage years, your growth in Christ is the most important. God intends to use your teen years as a launching pad into a lifelong pursuit of looking more like Jesus. This book will help you prioritize your Christian growth—pointing you to the resources God has given you in his Word, in prayer, and in the church; offering help for managing your emotions, watching your words, and bearing spiritual fruit; and challenging you with ways to center your life around this important task. Even as a teenager, you have all it takes to grow in godliness.
How important is religion for young people in America today? What are the major influences on their developing spiritual lives? How do their religious beliefs and practices change as young people enter into adulthood? Christian Smith's Souls in Transition explores these questions and many others as it tells the definitive story of the religious and spiritual lives of emerging adults, ages 18 to 24, in the U.S. today. This is the much-anticipated follow-up study to the landmark book, Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers. Based on candid interviews with thousands of young people tracked over a five-year period, Souls in Transition reveals how the religious practices of the teenagers portrayed in Soul Searching have been strengthened, challenged, and often changed as they have moved into adulthood. The book vividly describes as well the broader cultural world of today's emerging adults, how that culture shapes their religious outlooks, and what the consequences are for religious faith and practice in America more generally. Some of Smith's findings are surprising. Parents turn out to be the single most important influence on the religious outcomes in the lives of young adults. On the other hand, teenage participation in evangelization missions and youth groups does not predict a high level of religiosity just a few years later. Moreover, the common wisdom that religiosity declines sharply during the young adult years is shown to be greatly exaggerated. Painstakingly researched and filled with remarkable findings, Souls in Transition will be essential reading for youth ministers, pastors, parents, teachers and students at church-related schools, and anyone who wishes to know how religious practice is affected by the transition into adulthood in America today.
This Handbook draws together leading social scientists in the world from multiple disciplines to articulate what is known and needs to be known about spiritual development in childhood and adolescence.
Moms and daughters will be empowered to embrace the girls of grace God designed them to be instead of conforming to society’s mold of normal. As a mom of two daughters, Catherine understands how unique the mother/daughter bond truly is. A few years ago, she looked tirelessly for a Bible study to share with her tween daughter. Catherine found countless options for children and teens but very few for the tween age group—and none of these options were designed for moms and tween daughters to share together. Recognizing an unfulfilled need, Catherine wrote Becoming a Girl of Grace. Moms and daughters will take a closer look at some of the amazing ladies of the Bible and the character traits they model for modern tween girls. These women of yesterday have a lot to share with the girls of today! Dealing with mean girls and bullies, feeling left out, and learning to like oneself are not new social dilemmas. The Bible is full of examples of strong females who chose to follow God and pursue faith despite what was happening in their world and cultures.
