67 things for teens, tweens to do this summer

Dear Parents,

As the school year ends and May quickly turns to June, Dubois County CARES has concerns about how your teens and tweens will spend the summer. 

Substance use across the board peaks during the summer, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. It is particularly noticeable among teens and young adults. According to SAMHSA, up to twice as many youths try alcohol for the first time each day in June and July compared to other months. First-time marijuana use among adolescents increases similarly during these two months.

Why? Well, some young people (and adults) face mental health challenges that the isolation and loneliness of increased free time exacerbate, and they turn to substances. And many in this age range see summer as a long stretch of little to do and even less supervision. 

While we can’t help with the supervision part – other than to recommend organized programming such as what the local libraries and park departments offer – CARES club members from each of our four county high schools have come up with a list of 67 healthy things for their peers to do this summer. We present that list here and ask you to guide your adolescent toward completing some of the activities. It is important for adolescents to have something to look forward to, to occupy their time productively, and to take pride in afterward. 

Here is the list: Go for a walk, Read a book, Go to a library program, Drink chocolate milk, Get back to a healthy sleep schedule, Play a board game, Go to the swimming pool, Visit an adjacent state, Watch a movie with a friend, Create art, Sing, Do karaoke, Learn a K-Pop dance, Try a new food recipe, hang out with friends, Try a new hairstyle, Go birdwatching;

Go sightseeing in your own community, Go fishing, Play cards, Make slime, Do your summer homework, Go on some dates, Get a job, Do some pottery, Write poetry, Paint your nails, Go to a community festival, Color, Volunteer, Go camping, Hike at a nature park, Go to the beach, Watch a musical, Learn an instrument, Learn how to crochet, learn how to macrame;

Work out, paint a painting, paint a room, go get ice cream – try a new flavor, make bracelets, make a stressball, start a collection, rearrange your room, buy new room decorations, read in the Bible, go to church, hang out with Grandma, Make a cake, Celebrate a birthday, Make a playlist, Go to sports practice, Try a new restaurant, Visit a nursing home, Go to a museum;

Go to an arts center, Dance, play a pickup game of basketball, go for a bike ride, doodle, make a meal with a friend, go grocery shopping with your parent, start a book club with one of your parents, take a pet portrait, take your cat for a walk, look at family photo albums.

Please share this list with other parents and caretakers. Print it out to share with your child, then mark off any activities as they are accomplished.

We’ll run this list in daily installments on CARES social media sites during the week of Memorial Day. We invite you to follow along, and during the next two months, report in with any successes and share your own ideas for things our young people can do.

Sincerely,
Dubois County CARES