Celebrate your teens on National Teenager Day
Not a kid, but not yet an adult: being a teen means undergoing a lot of big changes in a short amount of time, all with the pressure of how those changes will shape your adulthood. Teens face a lot of expectations placed on them by school, parents, friends, and even themselves about who they’ll grow up to be—but how often do we celebrate the person a teen is today?
March 21 is National Teenager Day: a day to celebrate the person a teen is in this moment and to show understanding for the challenges they face daily. A kind word, some encouragement, or a little appreciation to a teenager in your life on National Teenager Day could be just what they need.
Ways to Celebrate National Teen Day
- Connect: Make time to have a meaningful conversation with a teen, asking them about their thoughts and feelings.
- Make memories together: Plan a fun activity. Bonus points for trying something new to you that your teen likes to do.
- Learn from them: Ask your teen to teach you something new.
- Surprise! Plan a special surprise you think your teen would like.
- Volunteer: Volunteer together—let your teen choose a cause they want to support and volunteer at a nonprofit or group related to that cause.
- Games: Have a game night with family and/or friends. Board games, cards, trivia, charades, video games, and tabletop role-playing games are all great for a memorable game night.
- Day Off: Give your teen a day off from chores or family responsibilities.
- Words of Affirmation: Tell your teen you appreciate them and you’re grateful to have them in your life.
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Compliment Worksheet
Use our compliment worksheet template in your classroom!
Estimated time to complete activity: 15 – 20 minutes.
- Print one worksheet for each student in your classroom. Give a worksheet to each student.
- Have students write their name at the top, next to Kind Things About:
- Explain the purpose of this activity: to share one kind thing about each classmate, which will help them see themselves in a more positive light. Give an example compliment and discuss how to write a good compliment. (Good compliments are specific, sincere, don’t put anyone down, and focus on things that person can control—like actions, character traits, or skills.)
- Instruct students to pass their paper to the student next to them.
- On their classmate’s paper, students should write one compliment about the student whose name is written at the top of the worksheet. After writing a compliment, students should pass the worksheet on to the student next to them.
- Have students pass papers until they get their own back!
How to write a good compliment:
Be sincere: Only say things that you actually believe. If you don’t know a person well, it’s better to be generic than to make things up.
Be specific: If you can, refer to actions, traits, or moments unique to the person you’re complimenting.
Don’t compare: Highlight strengths and positive qualities without comparing to or putting down other people.
Focus on actions or character: Compliment things a person can control—like their actions, choices, character traits, or skills.
Celebrate National Teenager Day with a donation to our peer counseling program!
At Teen Lifeline, our teen volunteers are the real superheroes. Teen peer counselors look out for their peers both on and off the hotline; each counselor answers around 450 hotline calls/texts every year, helping hundreds of teens find hope when they most need it.
One way you can celebrate National Teenager Day: recognize the hard work of our teen volunteers with a donation to our peer counseling program. From spring break to the end of the school year is one of the busiest times of the year on the hotline—click the button below to donate today!