Parents are the ultimate teachers. From a young age, our kids are watching us, modeling our behaviors, and looking to us for answers on how to navigate life. No pressure, right?
 
As a parent and attorney who works with parents, I have found learning how to provide these answers to our kids is critical. Education is huge, whether understanding social media and technology to be on a level playing field with our teens, learning the risks associated with prescription drug abuse, or even knowing how to deal with law enforcement.
 
When it comes to teaching our children how to interact with police officers, parents tend to fall into a few different camps. Some do not think it is applicable and are oblivious to the notion that their child could have an encounter with the police. Others may feel that embracing this topic is introducing and even condoning the topic of misconduct and should be left alone. Others feel it is necessary or even vital for our kids to be equipped with this knowledge. And I wholeheartedly agree with this last point of view—knowledge is a powerful tool.

The story of Ethan Couch is a sensational one. Could a child really be so unaware of the consequences of his decisions because his parents gave him everything he wanted, never told him “no,” or set any boundaries for him? The judge in his case certainly thought so, and his defense of “affluenza,” has been the subject of much debate, discussion, and media attention.