_B-PEN (Brookline Parent Education Network)  helps parents navigate the social, emotional and developmental challenges affecting today’s teens and pre-teens – common challenges that can lead to risky behavior. An outreach initiative that collaborates with Brookline school administrators and PTO’s, the organization’s goals are to facilitate parent connections:

                 * with other parents,
                 * with school and town resources, and
                 * with helpful information via written/electronic materials on a wide variety of teen concerns.

CYBERSPACE NEWSLETTER IS OUT! Brookline Parent Education Network’s new Parent Newsletter,  "Cyberspace -- The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly," reports on the latest Community Forum.  Learn about some of the most concerning issues and find out what parents can do to help guide their kids toward safe and responsible use of technology.  Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, texting, gaming, skyping, internet surfing – kids as well as adults are often spending more time in the virtual world of cyberspace than interacting with the real world. With computers in the vast majority of households and smart phones now functioning as mini-computers, we are more “connected” today than ever before. This constant barrage of electronic stimuli poses new challenges for today’s teens, such as the pressure to be connected 24/7, navigating the rocky road to responsible cyber citizenship, and the very real concern that all the technological distractions combine to actually rewire the developing brain.

NEWS and NOTES CYBERSPACE BREAKFAST A HUGE SUCCESS! B-CASA's October 2011 breakfast on “Cyberspace – The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” was the organization’s largest forum to date, with highly informative mini-presentations and a wealth of table discussion ideas generated. To read the full report, click here. Brookline DRUG TAKE BACK 10.29 Boston Globe article affirms -- FAMILY DINNERS ARE A POWERFUL FORCE! Read the full article...               RECENTLY ARCHIVED Parent Network Newsletter on TEENS AND PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE SECRET LIFE OF ADOLESCENTS ARE OUR KIDS CAUGHT IN A RACE TO NOWHERE? PARENT NETWORK NEWSLETTER ON TEEN STRESS STRESS NEWSLETTER - MIDDLE SCHOOL ED. NEW WEBSITE FOR MIDDLE SCHOOLERS "DELAYING THAT FIRST DRINK"

PARENT NETWORK CONNECTIONS One of B-PEN’s primary missions is to provide opportunities for parents to connect with one another regarding some of the common social/emotional issues all our adolescents face as they develop. To complement regular PTO meetings, grade-geared Parent Network get-togethers at each school provide opportunities for helping parents get to know, support and strategize with one another around common developmental concerns. For help starting a Parent Network or more information on B-PEN’s offerings and resources, contact B-PEN coordinators June Harris, jharris@brooklinema.gov  or Karen Campbell, kcampbell@brooklinema.gov.                                        * * * MEETING REIMBURSEMENT GRANTS To support and encourage parents of 6th–9th grade Brookline Public School students in the      formation of Parent Networks, B-PEN offers Meeting Reimbursement Grants of up to $50-$100 (depending on participation numbers) for food and supplies.  There are 10 grants available for the balance of the 2011-12 academic school year.  For more information, click here…

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