Language of Negotiation

Over 80% of our River Watchers are from low socioeconomic status households. One real way that we can help is by contributing to their development of healthy social skills, including teaching them to use the language of negotiation. Low-income conditions often dictate that family members focus on meeting basic needs but there are opportunities to help teens learn to explore options and consider the consequences of choices. Teens can learn to build their own resources, including the language of negotiation, in order to examine issues in a non-threatening and objective manner. The reality is that the obstacles low-income teens face may not always allow for a healthy exchange of negotiation but we can teach interpersonal skills that will help them navigate through their teen years and these skills will also play a key role in their adult life. Ruby K Payne provides insights into understanding poverty:  https://www.usd253.org/respect/documents/PovSeriesPartsI-IV.pdf