Tonight with your 13 to 17 year old

The prompt

“If you had kids someday, what's one thing about growing up you'd actually want to tell them about this time in your life?”

What to listen for

If they land on something proud or funny, that's a sign they see this stretch of their life as worth remembering well, they need to know you see it that way too.

If they mention something hard they'd want to warn a future kid about, listen closely without getting defensive, they need to feel that naming a struggle isn't a complaint about you, it's just honesty about growing up.

If they say it's too far away to think about, that's completely fair, the question can just plant a seed for later.

What this tells you

What they'd tell a future kid about growing up shows you what from this era they expect to carry forward as meaningful.