The Ultimate Guide to Raising Teens and Tweens: Strategies for Unlocking Your Child’s Full Potential Paperback – Illustrated, February 16, 2017

I enjoyed the author’s approach to effective communication with a child through the different exercises provided in this book. The author talks about the importance of going back to when we were that age to better form a connection with a child. He asks pointed questions related to the adolescent period in life, which sets parents in the right frame of mind for understanding their child’s specific fears, needs, and desires and how to best open up lines of communication. The book is so easy to read and keeps your interest throughout the chapters! Love the real life stories that the author shares which makes the book very interesting!

Good book for parenting advice.

WHEN I SAW DOUGLAS HADDAD ON THE TV SHOW "GOOD DAY NY" , I WAS IMPRESSED WITH HIS PRESENTATION AND LEARNED ABOUT HIS TWO PRIOR BOOKS, WHICH I PURCHASED ON "RAISING CHILDREN" AND THE OTHER ON "GOOD HEALTH". WHEN I HEARD HE WROTE ANOTHER BOOK ABOUT RAISING CHILDREN, I WENT TO PURCHASE IT. I WAS SO IMPRESSED, I BROUGHT THREE MORE COPIES AND SENT THEM TO MY NIECES. HE IS A GREAT AUTHOR, AND HIS CREDENTIALS ARE VERY IMPRESSIVE. WE NEED NEW IDEAS ON THESE IMPORTANT SUBJECTS. FJC

Excellent book for any parent. The individual stories are so real. The compassionate approach to understanding how kids develop certain behaviors and what we can do as parents to help them become confident young men and women. I wish I had read this book when my kids were in middle school. All the tools needed for parents are here. A bunch of us read this book out loud at the beach we all could relate.

Loved it! I love how the author brought to our attention the challenges our kids are faced with today verses when we were kids. As a parent of a tween, I appreciate all the strategies and tools offered to help steer her to a happier childhood. This is a wonderful book to help you guide your child to reach her/his greatest potential!!!!

The perfect book for parents who are in that wtf stage with kids boys or girls.

Review first posted at Girl Who Reads. A reader's copy was provided in exchange for a fair review.The Ultimate Guide to Raising Teens and Tweens is described as "an insightful and inspiring book to help parents raise children in today's world," and it certainly delivers on that promise. Technology has changed exponentially, and former guidelines can't always keep up with that. Douglas Haddad opens the book with an anecdote that outlines the experience he has with this topic, because teens' and tweens' needs change quickly.It then outlines the basic skills that all children need to succeed: problem solving skills, communication skills, and coping mechanisms. These are definitely skills that all people need, not just children, but are very difficult to outline or teach. The book goes into parenting skills and goals that help enhance those three core survival skills, and there are examples and anecdotes to outline his point. It's put forth in a very straightforward and down to earth way, without seeming condescending for the parents reading the book.He also references psychological theory and explains it in that same straightforward manner, with everyday examples that are easy to understand.Sample conversations to approach situations, like discussing installing a tracking app on a phone, are helpful for parents to reference. Even the common problem of getting kids out of bed in the morning is referenced in chapter 8, with suggestions for solutions and easily enforced consequences. Chapter 10 has a great outline for creating reachable goals and meeting them.The second half of the book tackles the difficult topics, including bullying, sex, drugs, alcohol, depression, suicide. Each topic contains suggestions for what to look for as warning signs, how to broach the topic, and strategies to help the child through the problem.

“Doug Haddad’s inspiring ‘how-to’ manual for raising adolescent children, The Ultimate Guide to Raising Teens and Tweens - Strategies for Unlocking Your Child’s Full Potential, is a must read for parents! Haddad provides readers with countless creative tips to surviving the turbulent and challenging years of raising adolescents. He brilliantly outlines modern ways to communicate with children and motivate them. The book addresses behavioral challenges and deals with major issues such as setting goals and limits and teaching children to be accountable for their actions. Haddad’s motivational handbook empowers readers to tap into their ‘Child Unlimited’ tools, such as encouraging parents to: use empathy and consequences; be cool and see the child in themselves; and maintain a positive wavelength, so they can learn what they can do to help their children reach their full potential. Parents will discover that Haddad’s positive, passionate and insightful approach to dealing with real-world adolescent problems and solutions will help create smart, successful and self-disciplined children. All parents should read this uplifting book - it is a top-notch, invaluable treasure.”-Stephanie Cassidy, 2016 Tolland, Connecticut district Teacher of the Year and semifinalist for Connecticut Teacher of the Year, middle school science teacher, enrichment coordinator, parent of two grown children