3 Ways To Prevent Your Teenager From Sneaking Out At Night
As any parent of a teen can tell you, the teenage years can be rough. The little child that thought the world of you suddenly hates you and is embarrassed by you, and life at home is no picnic. There are many temptations during the adolescent years, and it is normal for a parent to want to give guidance, have rules, and prevent a teen from getting out of control. If you are the parent of a particularly willful teenager, use the following tips to keep him or her from sneaking out so you can rest assured that your kid is home when he or she is supposed to be:
Window Bars
If you have a single level home, sneaking out the window is very easy for a teenager to do. While you as a parent have already gone through the crazy teen years, there is a good chance that your child will not listen to your good advice, and he or she may try to sneak out anyway. A simple solution that will protect your child, while giving you peace of mind, is window bars; window bars can also make your home safer, but it is important to ensure that your teen's room has a properly functioning smoke detector to ensure that he or she can find a different escape route in the event of a fire.
Alarm System
A home alarm system can be a valuable resource when you want to ensure that your teen is at home sleeping instead of getting into trouble. If you have a home alarm system, contact the company that you have service through to see if you can change your alarm codes for different times of day. If you can do so, have a night alarm code that your teenager doesn't know so you will be alerted by alarms if he or she tries to sneak out.
Utilize Smart Phone Technology
Most teens love their smart phones, but they don't realize that most smart phones have a built in GPS system, and there is software available for parents to find where their teen is. If you pay for your teenager's cell phone, you have a right to use the GPS function to find out where your child is if you wake up in the middle of the night and discover that your teen has left your house against your rules.
Parenting a teen is not easy, but staying an active part of his or her life is important. When a teen sneaks out of the house, there is a good chance that he or she is up to no good, so your diligent parenting can make a positive effect and may even help prevent a tragedy.