A boy's friends have an incredible amount of influence over the way he acts and thinks. That's why choosing the right friends is so important. The Bible cautions a person in choosing friends, and so should we. Stories should show the importance of avoiding the wrong crowd. You can tell your children not to touch a stove because it's hot, but it seems that some of them just have to learn the hard way.
Experience is a great teacher, though often painful.
God instituted chains of authority that we need to recognize. Parents, teachers, counselors, policemen, and others are to be obeyed. Children need to learn that authority is for their own good. The world has some distorted ideas about what manhood is all about. God doesn't need macho loners.