Activities for Teens

 Are you looking for some fun and creative activities for teens or tweens?  What about a List of Activities for Teens During Quarantine?  I know that during the time of social distancing and staying home, it can be hard to be creative, but these activities for you & your teens will give you some ideas so you can have fun & enjoy your time together. 

I love sharing activities for teenage girls & activities for teen boys with you and I hope that you find that these fun activities for teens work well for your family.  As you know, I have found the teen years to be the best yet, and spending time with your teenagers is so important.  

There are so many things to do with teenagers and they are as basic as cooking together, having a game night, watching Netflix, or working on landscaping projects together. 

 Oftentimes, I find that the mindfulness activities for teens are often the ones that our kids like the best:  just sitting and talking.   Our kids could “sit & talk” for hours on end, and they never tire of it.   They love talking when they know that you are interested in what they are saying, while actively listening to them.  

Today we are sharing creative, exciting, and FUN things to do with teenagers at home.   My teens are always creative and they are always making me laugh!   When we let our kids’ personalities shine, we find that they are hilarious, fun to be around, and they help make any job more fun.  

I have compiled a list of things we have been doing to pass the time since we’re all home right now.   We plan on doing as many of these things as we can, and when we think of a great idea that we can’t do right now … we’ll add them to our bucket list.   

Get Into The Kitchen!  

BAKE WITH YOUR TEEN: 
Find a recipe online & create it.  Baking is always a fun activity!  What teen doesn’t love a plate of freshly baked cookies?

PLAN THE MENU: 
I’d also suggest creating a weekly menu together.  Teens love to take part in things that help the family, and this also allows them to be sure that they are getting their favorite dinner every week.  

PLAY “CHOPPED”:
If you are looking for a unique activity for teenagers – try this! Create with your own “Chopped Kitchen”.   We love to do challenges like “Chopped” and “Cake Wars” in our house!

How to Play “CHOPPED” at Home: Pull random ingredients from your pantry, fridge, and freezer.   Brainstorm with your teens to come up with recipe ideas using those ingredients.  This is also a great way to use up leftovers (or have fun with your partially fulfilled online grocery order- hahaha!)   
      Tip: Omelets, Egg-Cups, and sandwiches seem to work well with this option.

Get Cooking!
Research & Recreate Popular Dishes From Other Countries

If you used to look up ideas for “things to do for teens near me” but have found that you now want to find fun things to do at home, this might be just the ticket!  Since you might not be able to get out to a biking or hiking trail right now, and you probably aren’t planning on heading to the movies or to a museum… these ideas are perfect.

VIRTUALLY EXPLORE ANOTHER COUNTRY: 
This is one of my favorite fun indoor activities for teens.  Take a VIRTUAL Field trip with your teen by your side.    Since you have been baking & planning recipes together, use the opportunity to travel the culinary world from your living room! 

Once a week, pick a country to learn about.   Find that country on Google Earth & explore it!   Search for Virtual Field Trips in that country.   

RESEARCH THEIR TOP CULINARY DISHES:  
Do a little research together and find the country’s most popular dishes, and then prepare that dish together.  Having a traditional meal that represents that country is a great way to give our kids a little exposure to things outside of our comfort zone, or out of the norm of what we normally eat.    

It’s so much fun & the kids have been loving these meals – some are already made often in our home, but when we cook them according to the new directions, they taste like a completely different dish! 

Examples: When learning about Italy, we made lasagna.  When learning about Mexico, we made Tacos & Taco Cups.  

Get Active with Spring and Summer Activities for Teens! 

LEARN A NEW SKILL: 
When your kids aren’t able to do their spring sport, you have to find a way to get active with your teen!   Kids should keep practicing their sport, hobby or activity, even if they can’t be with their team.   You can even have fun by playing a video game where they are ‘playing’ their sport- and you can join in!   Hit that golf ball or tennis ball (virtually) while you have fun laughing with your kids. 

GROUP ACTIVITIES FOR TEENS AT HOME: 
Our teens have been working on lacrosse drills in the backyard, as a “team” -passing the ball to one another, etc.. 
They have been playing basketball games like “Horse” and “Around the World”  in our driveway. 

TEAM BUILDING ACTIVITIES FOR TEENS (when they can’t get actually be together):  

• Our son’s coaches have been organizing group zoom calls for the team to just talk. Each member of the team has the option to attend, but they all show up.  They play team building games online together & talk about the importance of meeting to stay connected. 
• Their teachers have been having “meet with your friends” calls on Zoom & Google Hangout, where they have 15 minutes before or after class sessions to just talk & have fun.
• Our church has been planning fun online games to do on calls (online scavenger hunts & more) 
• Our neighborhood & community have been planning neighborhood hunts & fun neighborhood activities that we can do without actually being together. 

WALKING & JOGGING: 
Go for walks or jogs with the kids – it is a great opportunity to just talk.  Don’t bring music or even your phone, if possible.  Paying attention to your kids is key to making this walk fun for them.  Just let this be a time of getting active & getting a chance to talk at the same time.   

If you have dogs, take them along, too – they’ll be grateful for the exercise! 

WORKING OUT AT HOME: 
Try an in-home workout of your choice.  With outlets such as YouTube and Beachbody and more, everyone can find a workout that suits their unique interests and needs!  Yoga, Boot Camp, Weight lifting, Pilates, Martial Arts, Dance, it’s all available! Try something new every day!  

TEACHING YOUR TEEN TO GARDEN: 
Use this opportunity to plant something together. Plant Something! Plan a “salsa garden” and plant some tomatoes, peppers, and onions. Plant your favorite flowers. Begin a vegetable garden, or start a small herb garden.

TEACHING MINDFULNESS: 
Use this time to teach your kids about mindfulness exercises.   Try a Mindfulness Journal: 10 minutes a day for teens.  Teach them about the importance of deep breaths to relieve stress.  Show them that problem solving is easier with a clear mind, which comes from practicing mindfulness.   

Follow YouTube videos on Guided Meditation (you do a slow body scan in your mind, relaxing each body part as they talk, until you are relaxed, calm, and feeling peaceful), Breathing Exercises, and Yoga.     You can find short 10-minute videos to begin. 

Get Organized!

GO THROUGH CLOSETS:
If your teen is a “typical teen”, EVERYTHING gets shoved into the closet at one point or another, particularly when they have to “clean their rooms”.   This is a great time to declutter the closets!  Pull everything out of the closet and organize it.  Get rid of things that they aren’t using by separating items into Keep, Donate, and Trash piles.

We just did this.  As a reward, when we were done, we went online and selected new bins and accessories for closet and bedroom organization. 

DESK CLEANING: 
Like many schools during the pandemic, our school district has transitioned to virtual education.  Teachers are teaching online with presentations or by assigning specific lessons or games on educational websites.

This means my teens are in their rooms, sitting at their desks for several hours a day.  It’s a great opportunity to help them clean their desk and figure out how to organize it so it will work for their new schedule.

We used this opportunity to finally dispose of old notebooks and dried up highlighters. My teenagers picked desk accessories that they wanted to keep out during the calls (fun pens, pictures of friends) and they were ready to be at their workspaces once again!

GET A PLANNER… AND TEACH THEM HOW TO USE IT: 
We still use a planner… every day.   We use it in the same way that we did during our busy school year.  While we normally keep sports practices, games, and extracurricular activities in our planner, my kids have transitioned to keeping track of their own school schedules.   With different class times and a variety of assignments due throughout the week, it’s important that they are able to keep up with it.  

Planner Ideas:   
1. A dry erase calendar that is color-coded by subject, activity (online lesson, etc..) and assignments. 
2. A printable weekly planner that is kept in the kitchen, but everyone writes in their own details. 
3. A student planner that your child is in charge of on their own. 

Get Musical: 

LEARN A NEW INSTRUMENT: 
My daughter received an instrument for her birthday last year. She played it for a while, but with the busy-ness of school life, it fell by the wayside once school started.     Now that she is home more, she has picked back up on practicing.   
She is watching YouTube videos and finding music online! 

You can find free lessons, tutorials, and beginner songs for any age level (preschool through high school) for almost any instrument with a little research.  

UPDATE PLAYLIST:
Spotify, Pandora, iHeart music, YouTube Music, Apple Music, Amazon Music… whatever their music of choice, your teen has playlists.

Make a dance playlist, a party playlist, a sports songs playlist, or a throwback list (watch out… their “throwbacks list” will go all the way back to the 2000s…sigh…).

Get Crafty!

MAKE TUMBLERS AT HOME: 
Glitter tumblers are super popular right now and you can make one at home!  If you have a way to make decals, all the better! You can also order stickers online if you choose, or even make your own. 

PAINT SHOES: 
Painting white canvas shoes has become super trendy and our kids are diving right in! There are plenty of online tutorials walking you through step by step, including what paints to buy.  You can even use sharpies & rubbing alcohol to dye your shoes! 

MAKE A WREATH: 
Basic wreaths are available for purchase online – you can have them delivered. Decorate with your favorite flowers, Eggs, a cross, or whatever reminds you of spring and brings you joy!  You can even decorate them with a sports motif. 

ADULT COLORING BOOKS: 
To destress and unplug, grab a few adult coloring books or print off some free-coloring sheets (you can find them online with a quick Google search).  Grab your colored pencils and/or markers and start coloring with your teens.

Get Cozy!

FIND A NETFLIX SERIES:
Grab a few favorite blankets, make some popcorn, and Netflix and chill.  Find some great Netflix series that your teen will enjoy as much as you.  (Examples:  “Love is Blind” and “Hart of Dixie”)

READ SOMETHING:
Read something. With a bit of a break with schoolwork, teens have more time to read something of their choice.  Check out these chapter books for kids if you want some ideas.   
Examples: The Hunger Games trilogy is popular with teens. The Fault in Our Stars, Paper Towns, and probably anything by John Greene is also popular with teens.

PUZZLES:
Puzzles are great for the mind.   It’s a way to unwind and relax while focusing on something else. 
We have a few Thomas Kincaid Disney puzzles from our trip to Disney World. You can purchase Thomas Kincaid puzzles or other puzzles online as well!

GAME NIGHT: 
Board Games are always a hit with kids when they can play with you!  My teens like the classics like Monopoly, Yahtzee, Clue, Uno, etc. They’re always fun! I find my teens to be very chatty and enthusiastic when playing games!

Get Pampered!

Manicures, pedicures, facial masks… now teens have the time to pamper themselves and pamper Mom too!

Get Writing!

JOURNAL: 
These days are challenging, but filled with so many blessings.     
Journaling has been connected with so many wonderful things, like being grateful.   This is a great time to have teens begin a gratitude journal.   They could journal to reflect on today’s happenings or about what they are looking forward to in the months ahead. 

Check out the journal called Wreck This Journal.  It’s a best-seller & it’s pretty interesting- it gives you “tasks” (like “Draw circles” or “Do a crayon rubbing on this page” every day that helps you to focus & relax. 

SEND TEXT MESSAGES:
Our family tends to communicate this way throughout the day. We send funny memes, silly emojis, Bible verses, photos, etc… to each other throughout the day. We also send positive news stories or articles to one another, too.

Get Connected!

VIDEO CALLS WITH FAMILY & FRIENDS:
We may be social distancing, but that doesn’t mean we can’t stay connected! Encourage teens to call or email family members. They can use Google Hangouts or Zoom or Facetime.  Our son & his friend have been playing board games like Life and Monopoly together over Facetime.  You could try checkers, chess, or Guess Who.  Those would all be fun games to play over a video call. 

They even take their phones outside & play a game of “HORSE” or “PIG” while shooting the basketball around. 

VIDEO GAMES:
Our kids put their money together to buy a gaming system since they couldn’t go out.  It was a way that they could connect with friends, classmates, and family while playing.  They can talk while they play – it makes the games so much more phone. 

ENCOURAGE CONNECTION:
Encourage your kids (teenagers & younger kids) to connect with at least one person or group, daily!  

I hope these ideas help you connect more with your teens at home in the upcoming months!
Remember to make memories, keep laughing, and count the blessings!!