Summarize this article in one sentence.
Your child should know that they can come to you at any time to talk. You might think your child already knows this, but reminding them on occasion may be helpful. This should be done with no pressure, not after a room search or questioning. Simply say "I understand that you may be going through things that are confusing or troubling. Growing up can be hard. You can always come and talk to me about anything no matter how small." When your child does open up, reinforce this behavior by affirming it: "I know that must have been hard for you to talk about. I really appreciate you trusting me to tell me about what's going on with you." Parents are often juggling a dozen tasks at once, which means you may miss opportunities to have meaningful conversations with your child. When your child decides to talk to you, aim to listen. Monitor your nonverbal body language to ensure that it is open (i.e. arms and legs uncrossed), that you are oriented towards them, that you make regular eye contact, and that you make expressions to show you are listening, such as nodding. When you fail to attend to your child when they are trying to talk to you, you send the message that what they to say isn't important. This may cause them to keep things to themselves in the future. When your child has the need to talk to you, try to make yourself available as soon as possible. You've learned that your body language can signal a disinterest in what your child has to say. This is also true when you miss conversation openers. Consider this scenario: Your teenage daughter comes home upset. You ask what's wrong and she starts talking about a fight with her best friend. You realize that she is only upset about "teenage drama" and you slowly tune her out or half-listen. If she notices that you are not engaging in the conversation, she will shut down. Use even the simplest conversations as a way to connect with and get closer to your child. If they feel like they can talk to you about the little things, they may be more confident that you'll listen to the big things.

Summary:
Keep your door open. Attend to your child. Look for conversation openers.