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Connect with your Teens through Pop Culture and Technology

Connect with your Teens through Pop Culture and Technology

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This blog is intended to help parents keep up with pop culture and technology as a way of staying connected to their teenage children. Parents can often seem to be behind the curve since whats "hot" in both technology and pop culture often changes so ra

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  • Best of the Decade - Best Lists in Pop Culture and Technology

    Posted on Friday December 18th, 2009 at 09:24 in books, music, video games, technology, movies, TV, celebrity

    Just as I did with my Best of 2009 post, I would rather share my favorite Best of the Decade lists than make my own. Since I don't like any of the names given to this past decade, I am just going with Best of the Decade. I have included lists in th...

  • Top 10 2009 - My Favorite Lists

    Posted on Tuesday December 15th, 2009 at 15:46 in books, music, video games, technology, movies, TV

    I thought of writing my own top 10 of 2009 lists but decided that I do not feel qualified to make them. I don't watch every television show or read every book, etc to make those decisions. So instead, I decided to search for and share a variety of t...

  • New Vampire Books for Teens

    Posted on Sunday December 13th, 2009 at 18:55 in books

    Our fascination with vampires does not seem to be abating any time soon. Movies, television show and books, especially books, are being cranked out as fast as possible to meet the rising demand. Vampire related entertainment vehicles have been big h...

  • Top 10 Tips for Great Digital Photographs

    Posted on Thursday December 10th, 2009 at 10:42 in books, technology

    I recently received a review copy of The Basic Book of Digital Photography: How to Shoot, Enhance and Share Your Digital Photos. I found some wonderful advice and couldn't believe how much I didn't know about taking digital pictures, even though I'v...

  • 12 Facts about the Holiday Season

    Posted on Monday December 7th, 2009 at 08:03 in books

    Guest post by Caroline Taggart, author of I Used to Know That: Stuff You Forgot From School. Each holiday season brings another round of cocktail parties, family get-togethers, and corporate gatherings -- and invariably, lots of small talk. It's e...

  • Books for Teens and Parents to Discuss and Connect

    Posted on Friday November 27th, 2009 at 09:26 in books, movies

    Below are three non-fiction books that can be read by both teens and parents and can provoke discussion between them. Reel Culture: 50 Classic Movies You Should Know I already wrote briefly about this book in my list of Top 20 Holiday Gifts for T...

  • American Library Association Newsletter - Great Teen Content and iPod Nano Drawing

    Posted on Monday November 23rd, 2009 at 15:54 in books, blogs

    The American Library Association's public website for its Campaign for America's Libraries, atyourlibrary, contains great information for teens and families. You will find advice for job seekers, resources for parents and ideas for kids and teens. I...

  • Anna Quindlen\'s Son\'s YA Novel adapted into Deadlocke Comic and Movie

    Posted on Tuesday November 17th, 2009 at 11:11 in books

    Anna Quindlen is one of the most acclaimed columnists, journalists and authors of our time. I especially love the essays she wrote about her family, published in her book, Living Out Loud. They say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, and in Qu...

  • Top 20 Holiday Gifts for Teens

    Posted on Monday November 16th, 2009 at 08:44 in books, video games, technology, movies, TV, lost

    The older our kids get, the more difficult gift giving becomes. Before they become teens, they usually will like almost any gift you buy them. Once they become teenagers that all changes. Hopefully you will find my suggestions helpful. Video Games ...

  • Final Fantasy and Philosophy - An Educational Book for Gamers

    Posted on Tuesday November 10th, 2009 at 14:05 in books, video games

    This past summer I wrote about the book Heroes and Philosophy. I discussed the benefits of using pop culture to make philosophy more interesting. At the time, all of the pop culture philosophy books were about television shows, movies, or comics (wi...

  • 12 Interesting articles on Technology, Teens and Pop Culture w/e 11/8/09

    Posted on Sunday November 8th, 2009 at 14:34 in books, video games, technology, TV, blogs

    I found just as many interesting teens and technology related articles this week as I did pop culture and entertainment ones. Six of each. I hope you enjoy them: Teens and/or Technology Technology and Your Local School: What to Donate and What NOT ...

  • Nightlight: A Parody - Twilight Lampooned

    Posted on Tuesday November 3rd, 2009 at 18:23 in books, twilight

    When the Twilight book series first caught on, I wondered if it would become the next Harry Potter. I think I can say at this point that the Twilight phenomenon has definitely reached Harry Potter levels. A new sign of its pop culture status is the ...

  • Top 5 Apps for Comic Book Fans

    Posted on Friday October 30th, 2009 at 11:36 in books, technology

    Comic books are becoming more mainstream and seen as an acceptable form of reading for people of all types (See How Comic Books became part of the literary establishment, a great article by Tim Martin showing that comic books are not just for nerds)...

  • \'Girl\'s Guide To Her First Car\' - Great Advice for All Drivers

    Posted on Wednesday October 28th, 2009 at 10:06 in books

    When I first saw In the Driver's Seat: A Girl's Guide to Her First Car, I thought it was a wonderful idea for a book. After reading it, I now think that it should be called "A great guide to buying, owning and using a car for ANYBODY that is not an ...

  • Middle School Confidential - Graphic Novel/Advice Books on Surviving

    Posted on Thursday October 22nd, 2009 at 10:52 in books

    Cover via Amazon The middle school years can be the most difficult for anyone. Author Annie Fox, M.Ed. has found a unique way to help teens survive middle school unscathed. She has created a book series, Middle School Confidential, that teens and twe...

  • 10 Pop Culture, Technology, Teens Stories Online this week

    Posted on Sunday October 18th, 2009 at 10:59 in books, music, technology, movies, TV, blogs

    Another Sunday, another list of interesting articles you might have missed this week. Here are the articles about pop culture, technology and teens from the week ending 10/17/2009 that I would like to share with you: 1. The Explicit Books Teens Rea...

  • Tween Lifestyle Books from Just Ask Marlene

    Posted on Tuesday October 13th, 2009 at 09:52 in books

    Marlene Wallach, the President of Wilhelmina Kids & Teens modeling agency, has written a collection of tween lifestyle books. These books were created to help every girl be the best she can be. Marlene also has a website, Just Ask Marlene, crea...

  • Corn Flakes with John Lennon - Rock Memoir by Robert Hilburn

    Posted on Thursday October 8th, 2009 at 12:01 in books, music

    Robert Hilburn, music critic for the Los Angeles Times from 1970 to 2005 has written a new book of his memoirs, Corn Flakes with John Lennon and Other Tales from a Rock 'n' Roll Life. This fascinating book goes on sale on October 13, 2009. In Corn ...

  • The Lovely Bones Movie Preview

    Posted on Friday October 2nd, 2009 at 10:06 in books, movies

    The Lovely Bones has been one of the most highly anticipated movies of 2009. Why? It is an adaptation of the 2002 best-selling novel, The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold. The book sold over a million copies and was on bestseller lists for over a year. ...

  • Do One Nice Thing - Help Author Debbie Tenzer make the World a Better Place

    Posted on Saturday September 26th, 2009 at 15:22 in books, charity

    I have always tried to be a charitable and helpful person, yet I don't usually go out of my way to look for opportunities to help people. It is a good thing that Debbie Tenzer, author of the book Do One Nice Thing, and creator of the website, decided...

  • iPhone: The Missing Manual - New for 3GS

    Posted on Saturday September 12th, 2009 at 09:20 in books, technology

    The iPhone is almost limitless in the amount of things that you can do with it. Yet, for such a complex gadget, it does not come with a handbook to explain it all to you. I have found that while my teens are happy to just experiment without a manual ...

  • Book tells Teen Girls: You Don't Have to be Perfect

    Posted on Friday August 21st, 2009 at 11:56 in books

    Girls have never felt more pressure to be perfect than now. With jobs so scarce and actresses as skinny as toothpicks, there is pressure coming from all directions. Claire Mysko, working with the organization Girls, Inc., has written a very helpful b...

  • Tweens are Everywhere: Five more websites for Tween Girls

    Posted on Tuesday August 18th, 2009 at 15:13 in books, technology, blogs

    I've already written a few posts on this blog about social networking websites or online magazines for tweens but I just keep finding more. It is a great idea to have these social sites for tween girls only. Many parents aren't comfortable having the...

  • Book on How to Instantly Connect with Anyone

    Posted on Saturday August 15th, 2009 at 14:56 in books

    I have been writing my blog, Connect with your Teens through Pop Culture and Technology, to help parents and teens connect with each other. However, I am not qualified to offer any advice on how adults or teens can improve their skills on connecting ...

  • Birth Day: "It was 20 years ago today..."

    Posted on Tuesday August 11th, 2009 at 19:17 in education, books

    Actually, my son turned 20 last month. But on his birthday, since he is a huge Beatles fan, I wrote on his birthday card "It was 20 years ago today that you were born (and Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play)". Coming from his mom, I wasn't sure wha...

  • Lost University and The Dharma Initiative Mysteries

    Posted on Wednesday August 5th, 2009 at 12:33 in education, books, TV, lost

    Are you a fan of the television series Lost. Are you also the type of person that loves to learn about things that interest you. There is enough educational Lost material on the ABC website to keep you busy until Lost premieres its season 6 schedule ...

  • School Facts and Trivia that Parents Forget

    Posted on Monday August 3rd, 2009 at 11:17 in education, books

    How often do your teen and tween students ask you a question while doing homework and you can't remember the answer. You are sure that learned it in school, so you say "I used to know that". Author Caroline Taggart has written a book, I Used to Know ...

  • Zits Comic Strip: After 12 years, Jeremy Turns 16

    Posted on Sunday August 2nd, 2009 at 10:23 in books

    Ever since my older son entered his teens, "Zits" has been my favorite comic strip. I don't think I ever identified with another comic strip more. When my older son began to outgrow Jeremy's 15 year old antics, my younger son grew right into them. Fo...

  • Did Marriage and Kids Change You?

    Posted on Thursday July 16th, 2009 at 15:33 in books

    The most recent choice for my Silicon Valley Moms book club was a non-fiction book, What Happened to the Girl I Married? After almost 20 years of marriage, author Michael Miller felt that the woman he married had disappeared. When he was presented wi...

  • Best iPhone Apps: A Guide

    Posted on Wednesday July 15th, 2009 at 07:00 in books, technology

    There are currently over 65,000 applications available for the iPhone. Even if you know the type of apps that you want to download, how do you know which are the best. Josh Clark, author of Best iPhone Apps: The Guide for Discriminating Downloaders h...