Even if your teen doesn’t know that it’s called a “goal”, they likely have many things they want to either be, do, or have.
Helping them brainstorm goals, prioritize them, and then figure out the action steps they need to take to get them is much, much, easier when you can offer up one of these teenage goal-setting worksheets (PDFs).
Let’s check out these awesome, downloadable worksheets to help your teen with goal setting.
First up? Let's look at my own free goal-setting worksheet for high school students (pdfs).
We’re going to start off with my very own teenage goal-setting worksheet – this worksheet is all about helping your teen prioritize all of the goals they brainstorm according to how much money it is going to cost them to achieve.
Because let’s be real – many of the goals that you and I, and teenagers, set for ourselves are going to cost money to obtain.
And the more costly a goal? The longer it will take them to get there.
My thinking is that they need to focus on short-term goals in the beginning of their goal-setting journey so that they’ll get some early-on successes and come back to the goal-setting starting line again and again.
Have your teen and kid run through each of their current wants – whether it’s to save up for a car, for a new phone, go to prom, or for a weekend trip with a friend’s family – to see which goal they should prioritize first.
Hint: it’s the quickest-win goal, as short-term kid financial goals are really key right now in your child’s life!
Here’s a few list of goal examples to get them started:
Looking for annual goal-setting worksheets your teenager can use to think about their goals for the entire year ahead?
Great – here you go.
I just love the design of this worksheet – it gets kids and teens thinking about some specific things they want to be/do/have in the upcoming year, without the overwhelm.
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Not only that, but it addresses one of the most important – and often neglected (I usually forget to do this) – part of goal setting: reflecting back on what you've done up to this point.
It's one I always forget to do, but that can offer invaluable insight in various ways:
In this case, the worksheet prompts teens to write a few hard lessons they learned, fun memories they had, and things they're proud of from the previous year.
Now, let's move into more types of goal-setting worksheets for teens.
This is a really thorough teen goal-setting workbook (free PDF) that will walk your teenager through lots of different parts of the goal-setting process, like:
Here are a fun, and colorful worksheet pack that will help teens with a vision board, setting goals, and seeing them through.
These guys offer several pages that can help chunk teen’s goals in each area of their lives:
They then help your teen break down their goals in each category by 5-year goals, 1-year goals, and 1-month goals.
Here's a really simple goal-setting worksheet pdf that helps your teenager focus in on ONE big goal, and then write down some action steps they can take to get towards it.
Under the “Applied Brainology” section on this page, you’ll find a free goal-setting lesson plan and PDF for kids.
And I really like it – it’s focused on helping kids and teens make growth-minded goals.
Great notes for parents and teachers on how to facilitate your kids/students choosing a goal, getting more specific about that goal, understanding the realities of hitting it, and more.
This worksheet gives some great prompts to get teens focused on just one goal, and then to figure out the steps they need to take to get to that goal.
I looooovvveee the question, “How will I know I’ve reached my goal?” Because honestly? If you don’t define what “success” on a goal looks like, then you might just dance around it for months and even years!
Though technically created for adults, I think this goal-setting printable is great for teens as well. It'll give them the chance to start each month off fresh and to track how their plans are going.
The system for setting S.M.A.R.T. goals (you know: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely) is not just for us adults. Check out these SMART goal-setting worksheets for teens.
If you sign up for a free account with Teachers Pay Teachers, then you can access this free S.M.A.R.T. Goal Setting worksheet to help teach your kids how to make their goals measurable, specific, and more.
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Developing Good Habit has a great, free worksheet for students on setting SMART goals. I like how it focuses kids on one specific goal, and then helps them drill down on the logistics behind meeting it.
Now it's your turn – what are your favorite teen goal-setting worksheets pdfs (or goal-setting worksheets for kids)? Please share in the comments below for possible inclusion in this list!
Amanda L. Grossman is a writer and Certified Financial Education Instructor (CFEI®), a 2017 Plutus Foundation Grant Recipient, and founder of Money Prodigy. Her money work has been featured on Experian, GoBankingRates, PT Money, CA.gov, Rockstar Finance, the Houston Chronicle, and Colonial Life. Amanda is the founder and CEO of Frugal Confessions, LLC. Read more here or on LinkedIn.