Fun Things for Teens to Do This Fall

These fun fall activities will keep your teen busy.

Serg Myshkovsky / Vetta / Getty Images

It's important to keep teens active—physically, mentally, and socially. And while the fall season can be filled with back-to-school hustle and bustle, it also means shorter days. As the sun sets earlier and the weather cools down, some teens may be more inclined to stay indoors with their screens. 

To counter boredom complaints and lure your teen out of their room, help them find creative ways to stay active and busy. Try these fun fall activities:

Get Outside

Fall might be the perfect time of year to spend time outdoors, with its comfortable temperatures and photogenic foliage. Plus, outdoor activities usually offer much-needed exercise. Challenge your teen to recruit a friend or two and:

  • Camp in your backyard. 
  • Bike five miles.
  • Create a sidewalk chalk mural with a fall theme.
  • Sit outside and sketch a tree that is losing its leaves.
  • Rake leaves and play in them.
  • Take pictures of the fall foliage (realistically: take pictures of each other in the fall foliage).
  • Take your dog for a mile-long walk.
  • Tackle a corn maze.
  • Work in the garden.
  • Go hiking.
  • Pick apples or pumpkins.

Acts of Kindness

Consider volunteering together as a family, or helping your teen get involved in some community projects. You'll teach valuable life lessons that they might not learn in school. Here are a few acts of kindness you can encourage: 

  • In honor of Thanksgiving, write a thank-you note to someone who has helped you.
  • Participate in a fundraising event for charity.
  • Volunteer to walk a neighbor's dog or rake their leaves.
  • Offer to babysit (for free) for someone who could use the break.
  • Volunteer for your local food pantry.

Fun With Friends

The beginning of the school year is prime time for your teen to establish healthy relationships with peers. It's important to support your teen's efforts in seeing friends outside of the school setting. Here are a few fun fall activities your teen might want to do with friends:

  • Plan a harvest party.
  • Plan a Halloween party.
  • Plan a group Halloween costume.
  • Carve pumpkins together.
  • Have a bonfire and tell ghost stories. 
  • Have an overnight movie marathon.
  • Play a murder mystery game.
  • Visit a haunted house (or work at one).
  • Attend a sporting event at school.
  • Join a new school club or invite someone new to a club you are in.

Family Adventures

Fall is a great time to build family memories. Create new adventures together and look for ways to share quality time, enjoying fall activities like these.

  • Hike a rail trail to check out the fall foliage.
  • Stuff a scarecrow.
  • Decorate for Halloween.
  • Roast pumpkin seeds or try another fall recipe together. Anything with apples, pumpkins, or squash works.
  • Organize a yard sale.
  • Picnic at a local park.
  • Get your community's events list for the fall and choose a few to attend.
  • Have a bonfire and roast marshmallows.
  • Have a fall color scavenger hunt.
  • Go on a hayride.

Learn Something New

With the start of a new school year, assess your teen's life skills. Are there household tasks they could be learning? How about new steps toward financial independence? Pick a couple of these valuable life skills to work on.

  • Start or balance a checking account.
  • Learn how to make a favorite family recipe, or prepare a meal for the family.
  • Start a small business or apply for a part-time job.
  • Start a new healthy habit.
  • Take responsibility for a new household chore, such as laundry or cleaning their own bathroom.
  • Join a book club (or start one).

By Denise Witmer
Denise Witmer is a freelance writer and mother of three children, who has authored several books and countless articles on parenting teens since 1997.