Tips for creating a 'hangout home'

With the new school year underway, you’ve likely heard new names — and requests to have friends over.

For elementary schoolers, typically that means getting the other parents’ contact information and setting up a playdate. However, things change for middle school and high school students.

Making your home a place where older kids and their friends want to hang out isn’t just about having the latest gadgets — it’s also about creating a warm, welcoming atmosphere.

In a time when phones and social media shape so much of kids’ social lives, creating a safe space for real connection matters more than ever.

“So much of teen communication happens in online spaces,” Willough Jenkins, an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of California San Diego, told TODAY, “so having a physic