Spend Summer with Your Teens without Boring Them to Death

It’s in the air. You can taste the freedom.

For Elk Grove teenagers, it's already that magical time of year – three months of pure, unadulterated bliss known as summer break.

So naturally, teens are just itching to spend time with Mom and Dad over the next three months.

Right, kids?

“I try to avoid them,” said Joe Pasqual, 15, a student at .  “I feel like I see my parents enough during school.”

“They don’t do the same stuff,” said Charles Sunday, 16, another student at Elk Grove.  “Kids and adults are into different things.”

Okay, maybe these Elk Grove teens have a point.  Maybe adolescents aren’t exactly thrilled to share their summer freedom with adults.

So how do parents convince teens to participate more often with the family?

First of all, don’t give up hope on finding that quality time.  Most 13 to 19-year-olds actually enjoy being around ol’ Mom and Dad.  In fact, a 2009 national poll showed that 67 percent of teenagers want to spend more time with their parents, not less.

The trick is finding summer activities that both kids and adults will both appreciate.  Luckily, Patch and an informal panel of teen experts have you covered.  To find teenager-approved activities that parents can plan with their kids, we interviewed six Elk Grove high school students recently.

Based on their responses, here are some fun tips for convincing your summer breakers to hang out with the family:

Camping

Who doesn’t like a trip to the great outdoors – especially when California has plenty of state parks and campgrounds with jaw-dropping scenery?  A quick online search at www.reserveamerica.com found more than 150 campsites within 100 miles of Elk Grove. 

Teens seemed to agree that camping is a can’t-miss idea for parents to plan.  Out of the six Elk Grove high schoolers interviewed, five named camping as something they would enjoy with their family.  Sunday, the Thundering Herd student who claimed parents and kids sometimes have different interests, agreed that “camping is fun” when his parents plan a trip outdoors. 

Day trips

Seems like an easy one, right?  Well, yes and no.  Our teen panel liked the idea of taking road trips – but with a few strings attached.

Avery Wells, a freshman at , said most kids his age love road trips, “unless they have to go visit relatives,” he said.  And Lena Carmona, who just graduated from Pleasant Grove, pointed out it’s always easier to get teens involved if parents allow other people to come along.

“Letting teens take their friends with them can really help get kids more excited about doing things,” said Carmona.

Parents can also look beyond Elk Grove for day trips and still keep their kids interested.  Wells said he always looks forward to visiting the California State Fair with his parents in July.  Megan Wells, a junior at Pleasant Grove and Avery’s sister, thought her friends seemed pretty excited to visit San Francisco with their parents last year.

Of course, you might have shoot higher to get those more reluctant kids involved.

“If it’s something crazy like Disneyland, then I’ll go,” said Pasqual.

Movie night

Several of the teenagers on our panel said they like watching movies with their parents. Wells stated that everyone in his family makes a solid effort to meet up for an evening together, especially if a flick is involved. 

“If someone’s busy in our family, we’ll still make other plans to hang out,” Wells said. 

Movie night doesn’t have to mean a trip to the theater.  Some of the teens said staying home is just as fun.

“We hang out at the house a lot in our family and watch movies together,” Sunday said.

So, Elk Grove parents, problem solved.  These three activities seem guaranteed to win over most teens glued to the Xbox, the computer or an iPhone.  And best of all, these ideas don’t break the bank.  Family campsites usually cost about $25 to $35 per night, plus the gas to drive there and some groceries.  A trip to, say, San Francisco is gas, a few bridge tolls and maybe lunch. 

And a movie at home costs around $4 for an iTunes rental – give or take the cost of a bag of popcorn.

On the other hand, sometimes parents just can’t win no matter what they plan.  Asked for ideas on how adults can get teens on board this summer, Sam Hong, a freshman at Elk Grove, seemed puzzled.

“I’m 15 years old,” said Hong.  “I have no clue.”