Sky - I couldn't agree with you more. One of the big lessons I teach my children is that if they've done their best they have succeeded, set backs are a part of life and how you deal with them is much more important than the stumbling block. My second child was very upset as a young child that we celebrated our eldest's Cs in mainstream classes as much as her As. He worked very hard to get those Cs, she was able to maintain an A average without ever bringing a book home. She finally understood when she had a class that was difficult for her (a home ec type class). She's been able to sew since she was 5, but the girl can't cook to save her life. She was frustrated with the class and upset with her grade. When I asked her if she did her very best she started crying and said yes, that was what was upsetting her so much. I told her that she should be proud of her effort and ignore the grade.

But back to the topic of the thread. I do not believe that I have lost touch with teens these days. I would not be a teenager these days if you paid me. They deal with many issues that we would have never dreamed about. I'm speaking mainly of the violence in schools. Of course we too faced bullies and ignorance, but school was a "safe" place. No matter what happened off of school grounds, it stopped once your foot hit school property. Bullies hid their activity from school staff. And when I was in school (and I've raised my children the same way) if you got in trouble in school, you were in twice as much at home. I live in a small town, and I'm amazed when I hear the things that happen on the school bus, assualts, sexual assaults etc.

I think there are a lot of people out there that do not parent their children that creates a problem for us all; which is probably why the thread took the turn to discipline.