Understanding your middle schooler: a 3-part series for parents

Are you parenting a middle schooler?

Come together for one or all of these three programs that provide information and insight into pre-teen and early teenage development. Sponsored by UCC Norwell's WISE for Mental Health Ministry Team, and led by congregation member Maria Trozzi, this series will run on Sunday and Thursday nights beginning in late January. Topics will include resilience, big feelings, talking about sex with your middle schooler, and opportunities to practically apply the concepts discussed.

Read on to learn about each of the programs, and click here to learn more about the facilitators.

Developmentally Appropriate “Disasters”: A Conversation with Maria Trozzi on Navigating Agency, Big Feelings, and Resilience with your Middle Schooler

Sunday, January 26 | 5:00-6:30pm

How do 11-14 year olds navigate the predictable but exquisitely challenging developmental period between childhood and adolescence? The changes are cognitive, physical, emotional, and social; guided by the questions, “Who am I now? How do I belong?”

With humor and wisdom, Maria offers parents developmentally-informed strategies and reliable expectations for parenting during their child’s critical period of ‘becoming and belonging.’

Continuing the Conversation: Putting concepts into practice with your child and why it’s so hard

Thursday, February 6 | 6:30-8:00pm

Maria will continue the conversation with parents who attended her talk and would like ‘on the ground’ strategies for: putting these concepts into play, defining realistic expectations, establishing boundaries and knowing when to pivot. This interactive evening promises to be informative and supportive.

Attend one or both sessions (applies to January 26 + February 6)

Tackling sex questions with your ‘tween’

Sunday, May 18 | 5:00-6:30pm

Pre-adolescence is characterized by enormous developmental change that is rich with opportunities to set kids on healthy sexual trajectories, but many parents don’t know how to talk about sex with their middle schooler. This 90-minute workshop will focus on identifying windows for conversations, honing your ‘script’ for these magical moments, and how to introduce family values while providing factual content.