Since I’ve entered high school, my parents have asked for consistent phone calls and the who, what, when and where of pretty much all of my plans. I don’t know if it’s the fact that my friends can drive, or they realize that more kids drink and smoke now, but they’ve become a lot more protective than before. Is this overbearing? Yes. Obnoxious? Of course. But they’ve never done anything nearly as ridiculous as some parents out there.

My mother and I have a very honest relationship. She’s not an idiot, and I’m not a good liar, so I see no reason to hide or sugar-coat everything that goes on in high school. For that reason, she gets nervous sometimes when I tell her I’m going to a party or getting a ride home with a friend, but she still gives me freedom because she knows I can take care of myself.

Parents push kids to take AP and Honors courses, get jobs, prepare for careers and act like adults. At the same time, they’re dumbing children down by limiting their social experiences.

I realize that the parents of freshmen are used to their kids going to dances that are during the day, with the lights on and songs like the Cha-Cha Slide and the Chicken Dance playing. And that a lot of early middle school parties involve playing video games and Spin the Bottle. But how much can high school really change how tight your leashes are?

There is a significant line between protecting your child from things that could get them in trouble, and flat-out taking away their freedom and stunting their social growth. As teenagers, we do so many things to prepare for adulthood. We juggle homework, prepare for standardized tests, work on weekends and after school. Not to mention participating in sports, programs and clubs, all to enhance our college application, get into a great school and ultimately, land an amazing job. So you’d think we deserve the right to do what we want in our free time.

A good example is the famous GHS dances. They are usually way filthier than those of other high schools and we take great pride in that. We look forward to letting loose and having fun with our peers. And after all the hard work we do at school, we deserve this, right?

But right when I walked in, ready to dance, I get a purple bracelet slapped on my wrist. And a few minutes into it, numerous kids got them cut off. Not only did this make me paranoid, it made me feel like I was twelve again. I was waiting to be sent over to sit on a bench and made to copy the same paragraph over and over with Ms. Jones. “Protecting” kids only makes us feel like toddlers and aren’t saving us in any way.

Freshman Briana* says her parents have been buckling down even more since high school. “Last year I went to parties and sleepovers every weekend and my parents didn’t ask questions. Now, they just won’t stop. They think there’s always something bad going on.”

“How do you deal when they don’t let you go parties and stuff?” I ask.

“You mean how do I deal almost every weekend? I just sneak around. And if they catch me, what are they gonna do? Not let me go out more?”

Another freshman, Nick*, has a similar struggle. His mom objects to the way kids dance, and constantly complains to her friends about it. “They keep wanting me to grow up. But I still feel like a little kid with the way they’re treating me.”

And if we can’t do what we’ve been doing for years at GHS dances, trust me, we’ll find somewhere else to do it. There will be house parties, likely without any supervision, and themed dance parties that are cheap and have absolutely no regulations besides, “Leave your beef outside.”

If teenagers can’t partake in parties and social events now, they’ll probably do worse things in college, without shelter and limitations. If we can’t make mistakes and learn from them in high school, they’ll be made at a Frat party eventually.

We need to be ready for the real world, starting in high school. Bad influences are everywhere, and we need to make our own decisions. Parents are there to guide us, not keep us under a rock for four years.