Great Ideas to Engage your Teenage Child in the Summer Holidays

The majority of Australian parents to teenagers get rather stressed out when the long school summer holidays start, as they worry about what their offspring is getting up to; hanging with the wrong crowd is always a worry for concerned parents.

Here are a few great ways that your teenage kids can engage in the summer holidays.

1. Sports camps

Enrolling your child in one of the top Australian tennis camps is a great way for them to spend a few weeks in the summer break. If he or she shows promise at tennis, or any other sport for that matter, find a summer course to develop their skills. Soccer, rugby, cricket, golf, baseball and basketball are all on offer with leading sports academies and your child will learn all about discipline and application. Niche sports like archery and kayaking are also represented

2. Work experience

One of the best things that you can do is to give your son/daughter a taste of working for a living; there are lots of casual labour jobs in the Australian summer; picking fruit, monitoring live events or even a stint of gardening. They will certainly appreciate the value of the money they earn when working, plus it is great life experience and something every teenager should experience.

3. Foreign study group

Giving your offspring a chance to experience different cultures and values is an invaluable experience. Why not enrol them in a European study group? They can experience France, Germany, Spain and Portugal, which will broaden their horizon. Start by searching the web for leading Australian foreign study group tour operators and browse the many amazing tours on their books. These study groups are very popular so do book early to avoid disappointment. Click here to learn more about the evolution of athletics.

4. Volunteer work

How about enrolling your son to help poor communities at home or abroad? There are international volunteer groups that organise character-building activities to help poor communities, which is a wonderful way to spend the summer.

5. Art camp

If your son or daughter has a flair for art, enrol them in a summer art course to develop their talent. Art is a great medium that brings a lot of pleasure to the artist and spending a few weeks focusing on art is good for the soul. Of course, there are many different types of art; drawing, painting, sculpting, dance and movement and if your child has not shown any interest in art, why not introduce them to an art camp?

6. Language camp

Learning a new language broadens your horizons and if combined with a foreign study tour, your child will develop a second language which will stand them in good stead in the future. Young people tend to pick up new languages very quickly and this will be of great benefit in later life. It also boosts self-confidence when you can speak another language.

7. Fitness bootcamp

If your son loves a challenge, why not enrol him in a military-style fitness bootcamp? This is obviously not for the faint of heart and some kids wouldn’t make it to the end; no one should be coerced into attending a bootcamp, it should be voluntary. A teenager with discipline issues might benefit greatly from such a program, which is one of the reasons these camps were created. We all need some discipline in our lives and a boot camp can certainly instil discipline if managed properly.

Summer holidays are always stressful for parents, as they try to engage their kids in something meaningful and we think that all of the above suggestions are suitable. Talk to your kids and ask them which they would prefer and you might be surprised!

It is very important to maintain a good level of communication with your teenage children and let’s remember that their hormones are going wild during the teenage years; take the time to establish good communication and you won’t regret it. Plan for the summer now and your kids can start preparing for what should be an interesting summer holiday.