THE PROBLEM FACING TWEENS TODAY

The Problem Facing Tweens Today

One of the big problems facing Tweens today is they care more about what others think of them than they do themselves.  

While Saltwater Taffy is an award-winning middle grade adventure novel and soon-to-be feature film for tweens and their families, the reason it was created is because I can’t stand to watch even one kid grow up with the runaway idea that they are anything BUT amazing!

The positive and negative mental habits we develop during our “tween-age” years are often the mental habits we carry with us into our adult lives.

As young children, we are filled with many amazing dreams of tomorrow.  We believe that we can accomplish anything and that nothing is out of reach.  Because of our age, we aren’t yet worried about what other people think of us and have the innate ability to listen to our hearts desire.  Because of our age, we are more willingto take the risks needed to get achieve our desired goals.  We are outgoing and have no problem dancing to the beat of our own drum.  But then…something happens…we begin to grow up.

Faced with the pressures of fitting in and our drive to be liked by everyone at school, we withdraw from our dreams and develop the dysfunctional habit of playing small.  When we play small, we no longer raise our hands in class and often shy away from anything that might make us appear vulnerable to our peers.

We base our self-worth and future potential on how many friends we have on Facebook, what label of clothing we wear, or how popular we are at school.  Through media proliferation, the ‘un-reality’ of reality television, and the lure of becoming famous for the sake of being famous, our habit of playing small strengthens our limiting thoughts patterns and beliefs about ourselves.  In the end, we simply become another face in the crowd and grow up thinking we are less than amazing.

The Saltwater Taffy Solution

Like a compass guiding an explorer, Saltwater Taffy was created to help children locate their inner voice and strengthen their natural impulse for love and compassion.  The more a child is able to develop this inner ‘heart compass’ habit, the more likely they grow up to become confident young men and women.

If you are a teacher or librarian and would like to receive some FREE BOOKMARKS FOR CHILDREN, please send me an email and my office will send you a SAWEET package.

Eric “Uncle E” DelaBarre is an award-winning filmmaker and author of Saltwater Taffy, the middle grade fiction novel endorsed by 12 Teachers of the Year. Copyright November 12, 2012