Graduation is an exciting time for teenagers. It represents the beginning of a new chapter in their lives as they move further into adulthood. Your responsibilities as a parent begin to shift as your children gain more independence, but there is one last thing to take full responsibility for: their behavior during prom and graduation.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), nearly 60 percent of the car accidents that take place between prom and graduation nationwide involve persons between the ages of 15 and 20. Spirits are high during those weeks, and teens are more apt to take risks in the name of having a good time.
Make sure they know that their choices have consequences, and that the car accident statistics are not in their favor:
- In 2008, 600 teen drivers in Tennessee got into car accidents after drinking
- A teen driver who drinks is twice as likely to get into a fatal car accident than someone over the age of 21
- Car accidents are the number one killer of young people across the country
- Teenagers are involved in three times as many fatal crashes as adults
Your kids are allowed to celebrate during graduation week. They have earned it. Just make sure they know to call someone to drive them home if the situation calls for it. Help them live to see their potential.
“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” – Proverbs 22:6