7 Ways to Help Your Child Survive (and Thrive) in Middle School

For years, you have dressed your child in the clothes you like, enrolled them in the activities you approve of, and asked them to do things that please you. But now you have to let them do things their way, no matter how much it may scare you. Icard writes that you must "give your child ample opportunity to begin asserting her uniqueness," whether it's changing the clothes they wear or switching up their extracurricular activities. By allowing them to take smaller risks like this, they are less likely to be tempted by the more dangerous ones (i.e. drugs and alcohol).

Source: Flickr user MainDOE