Teen,16 wants PS3. Need Parenting Tricks?

Sounds to me like they have a kid that has been raised getting what he wants every time he whines and now he can't accept reality. In part, it's their fault for waiting so late to teach these kinds of lessons. Even my soon to be three year old is able to understand it when we tell him "not today because we're not prepared to make that kind of purchase right now". Is he disappointed at times? Yes, but he doesn't whine over it. At sixteen whining and have a "teenage tantrum" over something like a toy (which is what a PS3 is if you think about it) is just immature and ridiculous. If he really wants it and there is no other reason they have against him having one other than it isn't in the budget then at sixteen he is old enough to get a part time job or do things in the neighborhood (mow lawns, shovel snow for example) that he could do in order to earn the cost of the game system himself. Maybe when he realizes that money doesn't grow on trees and how hard he had to work to get it he may or may not decide to blow it all on a PS3 at the end. There is a certain age when kids are old enough to start earning money for things they want that aren't necessary to their life. This is one of those times and it should have been one of those times starting awhile ago. It's fine to want things, but part of being responsible is knowing when it's something you can splurge on and when it's time to accept that it isn't doable at the moment and either find a way to earn the money for it or do without. It's called life.

Well, is he asking his parents to buy it for him, or does he want to pay out of his own pocket? If he wants them to pay for it, an idea is to tell him "get a job if you want a PS3". 16 is old enough for a minimum wage job - he'll get a sense of what it's like to have to earn your money, not just have it handed to you. I found, when I got my first job as a teenager, that I started to respect money more - I wouldn't have blown my entire paycheck on a video game system. And if he can't find a job, maybe he'll start to appreciate what bad shape the economy is in right now.

Another idea is to show him how he needs to buckle down. Does he know what what he wants to do yet? If he does, take him around and show him exactly what he would have to do to get that job and what it entails. For example, if he wants to be a doctor, take him to look at a pre-med course of study, the grades and scores it takes to get into med school and what that entails, what the residency entails, what you do once you're certified, how much and how long this costs and takes. Have him talk to a young doctor who can tell him how much hard work it took. I might have missed some things in there, I'm not super familiar with medical training, but you get the point - it's just an example anyway. Even if he wants to do something freelance, like becoming a rock star, show him hard it is to make it in that - there are plenty of bands who have been around together and just play at bar mitzvahs and coffee houses. And if he's planning on going into the military, well that takes time and hard work as well - not everyone can cut it.

In short, the boy needs to grow up - in two years he will legally be an adult. Part of being at the age he is is balancing being a kid with preparing to be an adult - he should be looking at colleges now, padding his application, making sure he has the best grades he can accomplish.

The parents of this kid have a GREAT opportunity to teach him some very important lessons I only wish my parents had taught me at that age.

1) If you want something, earn it.

2) Study first, reward yourself after.

Here's how they can do it.

1) Let him know that wanting a ps3 is normal. Every teenage boy wants a ps3 or wii or some expensive gadget and there are three ways to get it: work for it, nag parents for it until they break down and buy it for you, or wait until your 18 and get a credit card to buy it. best option: work for it.

Set prices for chores around the house and when he completes the chore, set aside the money he earned for the chore. once he reaches his goal, give him a visa card with the total amount he earned and let him buy it. If you can't do that financially, tell him to solicit neighbors for round the house chores--grass cutting, hedge trimming, etc. Show him that money has to be earned so he understands the value of the ps3 as something he had to work for not something he is entitled to.

2) sound ground rules. No ps3 until homework is done--ie: take the remote controllers with you to work or hide them. he can have them back once you see his assignments are completed for the day.

These are valuable lessons he needs to learn before he is out on his own. Better he is taught now than has to learn on his own later...

She should tell him that Christmas was last week, and if he wants anything else, he needs to get a job and save up the money for his own game system.

easy, tell him to get a job and earn his own money for a PS3

they need to tell him that if he wants it so badly, he needs to go out and earn some money and buy it himself.