Bozeman Parent University

Informing, Supporting, Connecting . . . Bozeman Parent University

Bozeman Parent University (BPU) is a public knowledge sharing community developed to support parents and caregivers throughout Bozeman and surrounding communities.

Spotlight

A digital citizen is a person who has the knowledge and skills to effectively use digital technologies to communicate with others, participate in society, and create and consume digital content. Click here to learn more about digital citizenship and BSD7's approach to teaching students these valuable skills.

Click here to learn more about safety issues young people may face when they're online and what parents can do to help.

The Full Picture

The Full Picture is a short film from WebWise exploring how young people use social media to connect and share. The film highlights the influences and pressures young people face online and encourages them to see the full picture. Social media helps us share our lives but it does not tell the whole story. The campaign encourages young people to be mindful of what influences them and how they respond to pressures online.

The Full Picture is supported by information and advice on a dedicated campaign page available here.

Check out Common Sense Media to get age-based movie, TV, book, apps, and game recommendations for your family or to access their Ultimate Guide to Parental Controls.

Book Recommendation

The 14 essential conversations to have with your tween and early teenager to prepare them for the emotional, physical, and social challenges ahead, including scripts and advice to keep the communication going and stay connected during this critical developmental window.

"This book is a gift to parents and teenagers alike." (Lisa Damour, PhD, author of Untangled and Under Pressure)

Trying to convince a middle schooler to listen to you can be exasperating. Indeed, it can feel like the best option is not to talk! But keeping kids safe - and prepared for all the times when you can't be the angel on their shoulder - is about having the right conversations at the right time. From a brain growth and emotional readiness perspective, there is no better time for this than their tween years, right up to when they enter high school.

Distilling Michelle Icard's decades of experience working with families, Fourteen Talks by Age Fourteen focuses on big, thorny topics such as friendship, sexuality, impulsivity, and technology, as well as unexpected conversations about creativity, hygiene, money, privilege, and contributing to the family. Icard outlines a simple, memorable, and family-tested formula for the best approach to these essential talks, the BRIEF Model: Begin peacefully, Relate to your child, Interview to collect information, Echo what you're hearing, and give Feedback. With wit and compassion, she also helps you get over the most common hurdles in talking to tweens, including:

  • What phrases invite connection and which irritate kids or scare them off

  • The best places, times, and situations in which to initiate talks

  • How to keep kids interested, open, and engaged in conversation

  • How to exit these chats in a way that keeps kids wanting more

Like a Rosetta Stone for your tween's confounding language, Fourteen Talks by Age Fourteen is an essential communication guide to helping your child through the emotional, physical, and social challenges ahead and, ultimately, toward teenage success.

Big Topics for The 2022-2023 School Year

What is "school climate"? How do I know if my child's school has a positive school climate?

Social Emotional Learning (SEL).

Click above to learn more about what it is and more about BSD7's approach.

Other Helpful Resources: