New Years Activities for Teens
Ideas for Safely Celebrating New Year's Eve and Having Fun
Help teens celebrate the New Year in a safe, fun environment.
New Years Eve means celebration. But for too many kids, it can also mean an evening of drinking and partying, followed by getting behind the wheel of a car. Even for kids who don’t drink, keeping them off the roads may be the safest option.
Here are some ideas for providing New Years activities for kids that don’t involve drinking, drugs, or driving. These activities provide the opportunity for fun, food, and reflection in safe surroundings.
Have Fun
Plan a night of fun activities that will keep kids safe, sober, and off the roads. Offer lots of snack foods, group games, movies, and other activities so kids have plenty of choices. Another idea is to involve kids in planning and preparing a celebratory meal. This could be the perfect backdrop for the activities outlined below.
Reflect on the Past Year
New Years is the perfect time to look back over the preceding twelve months with both an appreciative and a critical eye. Some kids are at ease talking openly about their remembrances with each other in large or small groups. Some may be more comfortable reflecting privately in a journal or similar format, and then sharing bits with the group. Some ideas for discussion starters:
- What one thing will you remember most about this year?
- What one thing do you wish you had done differently?
- What was the best/worst thing that happened this year?
Make Predictions for the Year to Come
Another fun activity is asking kids to predict what might happen during the next twelve months. Kids may enjoy making predictions that relate to world events, celebrity gossip, or local news. Even more meaningful, however, is having kids make predictions about their own lives. Write predictions on slips of paper and seal inside a box. Next New Years, you can open the box, read the past year’s predictions, and talk about how accurate they were. Some ideas to get you started:
- What accomplishments will you make this year?
- What is one new activity that you will try this year?
- What will change in your life this year?
- Who will be the most important person to you at this time next year?
Develop Resolutions
After predicting and reflecting, kids have probably done enough soul-searching to write their own resolutions. Resolutions can be powerful. However, most people break their resolutions quickly because they fail to set achievable goals. Have kids outline what they would like to accomplish, then assist them in breaking down these ideas into small, measurable steps. Stick with only one or two resolutions to keep things manageable, and commit to checking in with kids periodically to see how their plan is going.
