TALKING ABOUT ALCOHOL
Here are some strong ways to start a dialogue around alcohol: • I heard on the news that one out of four 8th graders have tried alcohol. I was wondering… • If you were to guess, how many kids your age do you think have had a drink with alcohol in it? • How do you think it has helped them? Hurt them? • What are the reasons those kids might have had for drinking? • What are some of the things they could have done instead? • Why do you think they did that? • Why do you think they didn’t drink? Negative reactions from a parent can shut down communication and make it difficult to help a child solve problems and deal with difficult situations. Negative parental reactions include: • Letting off steam in an angry outburst • Giving the silent treatment and then saying “things are fine” • Bringing up the child’s past failures • Recruiting other people to support your side of the argument • Comparing kids and asking “why can’t you be more like your brother/sister?” You can also personalize the questions: • If you were in their situation how might you act? • How do you think it would affect you? • What are some of the things you could have done instead? • Why is that?
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