Why is being a teenager – or living with one – such a difficult task? Tonight at 9,
"Frontline" presents "Inside the Teenage Brain," a compelling report on new discoveries that may change how we parent, teach and understand teenagers.
As with all "Frontline" programs, this documentary comes with an impressive amount of supporting information and resources on its
website. The "Inside the Teenage Brain" website includes a
special section called "Do Your Teens Seem Like Aliens?" worth checking out if you have teenages at home. It offers a worksheet that helps parents and teens work on communication, a questionnaire designed to help parents spot signs of trouble in teens and an interview with Dr. Ellen Galinsky, president and co-founder of the
Families and Work Institute, a nonprofit organization conducting research on the changing family, workplace and community.
The website also includes a number of interviews with the filmmakers and experts featured in the documentary and resoureces about sleep patterns and school start times.
We aired another "Frontline" this year called "When Kids Get Life," which profiled young men serving life sentences for crimes they committed as teenagers. That program opened my eyes to the realities of teenagers' brain development. Prior to seeing that report, I didn't fully understand that teenagers' brains weren't as well-equipped as adults' to judge right from wrong or clearly see the consequences of their actions. I am happy to see "Frontline" extend the report and look forward to tuning in.
Also, don't forget, you can watch "Inside the Teenage Brain," "When Kids Get Life" and dozens of other documentaries in full on the
"Frontline" website.
If you watch "Inside the Teenage Brain" tonight, come back to Panorama tomorrow and let us know what you thought.
Stay warm.
-Allison, Rocky Mountain PBS
