Teaching teens about responsibility in the home can be quite challenging when they have such busy school and extra-curricular schedules, social lives, internships, and jobs.
The challenge is no longer about teaching kids how to complete tasks, but how to balance all that's going on in their lives so they actually do the tasks.
Teens often struggle taking care of themselves, managing their schedules, organizing, and prioritizing all they're required to do and are interested in.
My teens remembered responsibility lists I made them as young kids, and asked if I could create a teen version for them to use now to help them stay on top of responsibilities they have.
I was happy to create a resource for them.
It's my hope that this Free Responsibility List for Teens can help others as well.
Teaching Teens About Responsibility with Free Printables
We are a homeschooling Montessori family.
As part of their homeschool curriculum, my teens chose to study Life Skills as one of their electives.
I absolutely love this choice as it gives me opportunities to teach them life skills, but also responsibility, organization, prioritization and more.
Two out of the three teens I have at home right now are on the autism spectrum and have ADHD.
I can think of no lessons more important than those mentioned above.
Our teens are studying and applying knowledge from two books as part of their Life Skills elective.
The first book is 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey.
This book is absolutely fabulous and a favorite of mine.
There is a teen version of this book available, but I felt that the real deal would be more beneficial.
As we go through this book, our teens are learning to create their own schedules based on their roles and priorities.
This is such a fun and easy read!
Our teens are learning so much from it.
I love watching them apply their new knowledge in different areas.
Teaching responsibility is so incredibly important when raising teens!
Teens can break down responsibilities based on how they fit with their busy schedules.
As they complete tasks, they can check them off.
The goal is to have completed all daily and weekly tasks on time.
Below I show my teens' responsibility lists.
The FREE printable included in this post is blank so you can fill it in with tasks specific to your teen's schedule and needs.
FREE Responsibility List for Teens
The FREE Responsibility List for Teens is broken down into five sections:
- Daily Routines
- Daily Chores
- Weekly Chores
- Health & Exercise
- School Work
Daily Routines
My teens are pretty good about their daily routines, but they often forget one or two as they're rushing into the next part of their day or falling asleep in the few moments they're not too busy.
It's my hope that the Responsibility List for teens slows them down enough to complete all tasks daily.
Daily routines are no longer separated into morning and bedtime tasks, as each teen has their own preference for what time of day they want to accomplish each task.
Daily Chores
Our teens know that everyone in our family participates in the upkeep and cleanliness of our home.
Everyone has daily chores that help our home and family function.
Currently our teens rotate chores each week to ensure that all of them learn how to do each and every chore, preparing them to care for their own home in the future.
I've included a break down of their weekly chores below for all to see.
As each teen completes their daily chores, they can check them off on their responsibility list.
Chores are completed at different times of day, depending on which day of the week it is.
I don't mind when the chores are done, so long as they are done daily.
Weekly Chores
By age 12, all of my kids were proficient in washing, folding, and taking care of their own laundry.
Each teen has a designated day of the week when they can wash their clothes and bedding.
I try to make sure my teens have a week's worth of clothes to ensure they don't need to wash laundry more often.
Each week they cook a meal for the family.
It doesn't matter if they choose breakfast, lunch, or dinner, or if they want to prepare the meal ahead of time to reheat.
As long as they help with the cooking, all is well.
Saturdays are dedicated to the other weekly chores. in our home.
Teens can choose to complete them earlier in the week if they know their Saturday is going to be busy.
They are responsible for cleaning their bedroom and one living area of the home downstairs each week.
Downstairs cleaning assignments are rotated so everyone learns to clean each room of the house.
This year we've selected one room in our home each month to work on in regards to home improvements.
Our teens help with this process, developing more life skills.
One outdoor project is decided on each week as well.
We live in an old farm house on 2 acres of land, so there's always something to be done.
This may seem like a lot, but our teens are so used to this that they complete tasks quite quickly and then go on their way.
Health and Exercise
We have found that nutrition and exercise are crucial to helping our teens stay physically and emotionally healthy.
All of them face physical and dietary challenges which require special time dedicated to physical fitness and healthy eating.
I can think of nothing more important during the teen years than getting enough sleep, so we focus on that a lot to help improve moods.
It can be so easy for a teen to forget to take care of themselves in the midst of busy schedules.
If they can learn self-care now, it will be a skill they can carry with them the rest of their lives.
School Work
We are a homeschooling family AND our teens have homework.
Our goal is to prepare them for college, trade school, and careers in the future.
Time management is a necessary skill they need to master.
Currently our teens engage in studies related to ten subject areas by choice.
We spend three hours together in the morning and then they plan out when during the rest of their day they are going to study and complete assignments.
They know they can approach a parent for help when necessary.
The Responsibility List for Teens is the perfect way for teens to stay on top of what's required from them at home whether they attend school outside of the home or are homeschooled.
In our home, our teens know that before they attend friend gatherings their responsibility lists for the day must be completed to the ability they are able.
Before they go off with friends on the weekend, they must complete their weekly chore list.
We sit down together as a family on Sundays to plan out the week.
Our teens know we need 24 hours notice to work other things into the schedule that may come up outside of emergencies and unexpected appointments.
It's our hope that teaching teens about responsibility becomes easier with our free printable.
The Responsibility Checklist for Teens is designed to be flexible enough to meet the needs of every teen.
The Responsibility Checklist for Teens is a Subscriber Only Freebie and can be found in the Montessori Printables Library.
For your free copy, follow the directions below.
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