Mark Oestreicher – författare

Understanding Your Young Teen is a book on early adolescent development for parents of young teens and pre-teens. Parents of young teens will 1. Gain an understanding of the unique and not-always-obvious realities of early adolescent development. This new understanding can greatly enhance parents’ patience, parenting approaches, and relationship with their child. 2. Review the developmental uniquenesses of the young teen years. Most parents don’t fully appreciate the changes that are taking place in their teens bodies, minds and relationships. This resource will give them a solid understanding of those areas. 3. Explore new research and cultural changes. Parents will get a better understanding of the changing landscape of teen culture and see how much as changed since they were young teens. The bulk of the book will be based on the first half of: Middle School Ministry. The developmental chapters will be re-written for parents, and will not only include the developmental issues themselves, but the practical implications for parenting and living with young teens. A strong pro-young teen bias will permeate the book, as my affection for young teens and conviction that this age is a great opportunity for faith formation will be woven through all chapters. While the book will be based on research and experience, the tone will be conversational, from one parent of young teens to others. First-person tense will be used throughout, along with examples from my family and extensive involvement with young teens.

Families can be complicated, and this reference guide is here to help you get through whatever issue you might face—from frustrations with your parents to what to do if your family is breaking apart from divorce, or even if there’s been abuse in your home. With seventy-five short chapters that cover almost twenty major topics, there’s plenty of understanding, advice, and wisdom to help you navigate issues with your family AND strengthen the bonds that matter most.

Middle school is tough, and figuring out who you are during this time can sometimes mean more issues with your family members—from not feeling understood to wondering why you can’t have a little more freedom and trust now that you’re not a little kid anymore. And maybe your family itself is changing in ways you never thought could happen. In this book, everything from dealing with small frustrations to dating, getting more privacy, handling issues with siblings, and what to do when a parent lets you down or even hurts you physically is discussed and explored, giving you advice and ideas on how to navigate the issues in your family today.

My Family:

In My Future, you’ll think about the next years of your life and get advice to survive each phase of your future. You’ll get helpful tips to help you survive high school, dating, and life after your teenage years. After reading the books in the Middle School Survival Series, you’ll be ready to take on the rest of middle school with the confidence and knowledge you need to survive (and thrive) as a young teen.

Many people run scared from the middle school youth room. But (thankfully!) there are people out there who are actually drawn to those young teens. Although often times they’re not equipped to deal with the unique challenges that middle school ministry presents, or they’re just not sure what to do when a room full of young teens (who are “part child, but not quite adult”) are running around the youth room. Finally, there’s a comprehensive guide to middle school ministry, from two veterans of this unchartered territory. Mark Oestreicher and Scott Rubin help youth workers understand the importance of middle school ministry, the development process for young teens and their implications for ministry, and how to best minister to these sometimes misunderstood students. They share their experiences (as middle school pastors and parents of middle schoolers), giving youth workers he encouragement, hope, and training they need to succeed in middle school ministry.