Cannabis Conversations

The Cannabis Conversations toolkit gives tips to adults on starting prevention talks with youth about marijuana. These conversation-starter ideas are open to all adults including parents, educators, healthcare professionals, aunts, uncles, youth leaders and more.

CANNABIS 101

the basics

Cannabis or Marijuana

A preparation of the cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or medicine.

THC

The psychoactive chemical (active ingredient) that changes the brain and makes people feel physical effects.

Downloads

For additional information, download one of the flyers below. Print versions have been made available.

Cannabis Conversations

For adults with youth ages 8-12

For additional information, download one of the flyers below. Print versions have been made available.

Why this conversation matters

Before you begin...

think about whether your child is looking for connection, facts or direction.

You are your child’s main influence and they want to trust you first.

Starting this conversation now helps build the foundation for future conversations.

Setting clear boundaries and common sense reasons work best at this age.

Reassuring kids and tweens of how much you care creates connection and trust. (Even if they roll their eyes and squirm away.)

Youth at this age are shifting from concrete (black and white) thinking to abstract (gray area) thinking. They want the simple facts but can handle some complex information.

Why we say it this way

For adults with youth ages 13–17

For additional information, download one of the flyers below. Print versions have been made available.

Focusing on your youth’s life and their goals is more effective than generalizing.

When you talk about cannabis (or any adult subject) in a factual and honest way, youth connect with the information better and trust easier. They know more than we realize.

Voicing your concerns and being open to questions and challenges is key for your teen to connect with you. Connection to caring adults is the best youth prevention.

Setting clear boundaries & expectations without judgment or shame is essential.

If youth know it is ok to be honest, they’ll talk about their opinions and ask questions—and knowing how they think about these issues
is helpful.

For ages 18–21

For additional information, download one of the flyers below. Print versions have been made available.

Tips to Connect

Respect their boundaries, and yours too

Don’t judge or talk down

Listen more than talk

Connect, don’t try to convince

Know where you stand, but allow room for disagreement

Need Additional Resources?

Have a question that we didn’t answer? Submit it to preventcoalition@esd112.org and a Youth Now coordinator will get back to you with answers straight to your inbox.