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Recommended Guidelines For Parties
WHEN YOUR TEENAGER IS AT A PARTY we encourage you to:
1. Call the host: Before giving consent that your teenager
be allowed to attend a party, you might call the hosts
to make certain that there will be parental supervision
and that alcohol will not be allowed. Do not be afraid
as a result of the phone call to reconsider whether
or not your teenager should attend.
2. You should feel free to check the party plans before
hand with your teenager: It is all right to want to
know where your teenager is going and with whom. If
you do not know the parent hosts, introduce yourselves.
3. Make it easy for your teenager to leave the party!
If drinking or drugs are at a party or there is some
other reason that your teenager wishes to leave the
party, agree that it is all right for your teenager
to call you (or a designated adult) to come pick him
or her up at an agreed upon location. Urge your teenager
NEVER to ride with a driver who has been drinking. There
would ideally be an understanding that there will be
no punishment restrictions for calling.
4. You might want to greet your son or daughter when
he or she comes home from a party or you might have
some prearranged signal that will tell you that he or
she had arrived home safely.
WHEN YOUR TEENAGER IS GIVING A PARTY we encourage you
to:
1. Plan in advance: Check party plans with your teenager
and be aware of the guest list. You will want to discourage
an "open party" or gate crashers. The experience
of many of our parents shows that this can get seriously
out of hand quickly.
2. Set a time limit: It works well if you can set and
stick with a definite start and stop time.
3. You may want to agree on some rules ahead of time.
These may include:
* No drugs, including alcohol, may be served or bought,
or consumed on the premises;
* No leaving the party and then re-entering;
* No street partying;
* No gate crasher;
* Lights left on;
* You may wish to have some rooms in the house off-limits.
4. Expect to receive some phone calls from other parents
who will want to know the arrangements for the party.
5. We urge you to know and observe your responsibilities:
Remember it is illegal to serve drugs, including alcohol,
to minors. You may incur serious legal penalties if
you fail to observe these laws.
6. If there are "crashers" who appear at the
party, or if a disturbance is developing outside of
your home, you may want to consider telephoning your
local police or 911 and asking for assistance before
the party becomes uncontrollable.
7. Invite another parent or couple to assist: Other
couples can be company for you during the evening, and
can also be of assistance should problems arise. Also,
if parents have driven their teenagers to your home,
you might consider inviting them in to meet you.
8. Plan to be present.
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