Community Service Ideas for Your Teenager

Has your family ever done community service projects together? Our family has participated in several with our church and they are a great way to be out in the community to not only see the needs of the people but help meet your community as well.

If you’ve never done a service project, it’s not too late. In fact, it is something we want to encourage our own children to do, especially as they enter their teen years. Teens are tough. They are maturing and trying to figure out who they are and find their own way in life. In that time, some of them can become closed minded, in that they only see what is around them.

Getting them involved in community service projects is a great way to expand their view of the world and see how others live. Whether your teen is required to complete a specific number of hours of community service in order to graduate high school or you just want to stretch their view of “the world”, here are some great ideas to get you started.

Organize a Blood Drive

Someone in the US alone needs blood every 2 hours, so a blood drive is a wonderful way to provide community service to others. Have your teenager talk to a local school or a church and see how they can help to organize a blood drive. Be sure to check with a local hospital too, they often hold their own!

Volunteer at a Pet Shelter

There are many pet shelters throughout the world where community members are allowed to volunteer time. Your teenager could volunteer to play, train, feed and take care of animals that are in your local community shelter.

Become a Tutor

Does your teen excel at a subject? They could become a tutor by volunteering their time at a local school. Students often struggle with math or English and need a little help. As one who tutored in both high school and college, tutoring is also a great way to improve your skills and stay sharp.

Participate in Trash Day

Many communities will host a trash day where everyone gathers together and walks around the town in groups to pick up trash. Your teenager could look into your local community events calendar to see if your town hosts a trash day and then volunteer their time to help.

Stock Books at Library

The local town library will often have openings for community service help from teenagers. Whether it’s stocking books or organizing the library, have your teenager reach out to your public library to see how they can help volunteer their time at the library.

Run Social Media for Nonprofit

Ask around town to find out if any nonprofits need help with social media management. Your teenager, if knowledgeable with social media, can volunteer their time to help a nonprofit with social media. This is a great way to gain tech knowledge while doing something good for a nonprofit.

Donate Time at a Senior Center

Many towns have a senior center where elders can go to get a meal or enjoy some socializing. Have your teenager reach out to the local senior center to see what options are open for volunteering their time to help seniors at the senior center.

Help plant trees or work in a Community garden

Many communities use volunteers to help plant trees around town or a community garden, which is a great way for your teen to meet people and help, plus gain some knowledge of growing their own food!

One great way to help others around town is to offer a skill they might need. But how can your teen learn new skills? Check out Skill Trek! Skill Trek is not just great for tracking new skills, but also helps teach kids skills they might be interested in that you don’t know much about.

Final Thoughts

This list of community service ideas for your teenager may not work for everyone and is merely a guide to help get your creative mind flowing. Sit down with your teenager to discuss these community service ideas and see what they think. They might surprise you with a few ideas of their own!