Teenagers Need Practice Making Decisions Before the Decisions Get Bigger

We spend years teaching young people algebra, grammar, biology, and history. Yet one of the subjects they will use every day of adulthood is rarely taught directly:

How do I make a wise decision?

Teenagers need opportunities to think through consequences before they encounter high-stakes situations. Give them realistic dilemmas and ask:

What are your options?

Who could be affected?

What happens immediately?

What might happen six months from now?

What values are involved?

What information are you missing?

This is critical thinking applied to life.

The goal isn't to tell teenagers what to think about every situation. We want to help them develop a reliable process for thinking when parents and teachers are not standing beside them.

Take-away: Before asking, "Did you make the right decision?" begin asking, "Walk me through how you made that decision."

This is also the thinking behind my Life Logic curriculum, which gives students opportunities to examine choices, consequences, character, responsibility, integrity, and real-world decision-making.