Behavioural activation activities for teens help young people reconnect with meaningful, achievable actions when low mood and withdrawal make starting difficult. Useful activities help a teen choose an action, make it manageable, practise a first step and review what happened. They do not depend on feeling motivated first or promise an immediate mood lift.
This guide is for therapists, counsellors and clinicians working with adolescents. Each activity includes setup, words to use, a worked example and adaptations. You can run them with simple materials; buying a worksheet pack is optional.
What makes an activity behavioural activation?
Behavioural activation explores how patterns of activity and avoidance relate to mood and daily life, then supports planned engagement in personally meaningful activities. An action might offer enjoyment, connection or a sense of achievement. The important question is how it functions for this teenager in this context, rather than how productive it looks.
Low motivation can have several contributors. Check safety, fatigue, pain, bullying, sensory demands, access and practical support before framing a difficulty as avoidance. Rest can be a useful, intentional choice. Use these exercises within an individual assessment and care plan; immediate risk or safeguarding needs take priority.
Choose an activity for the problem in front of you
| If the teen says… | Try… |
|---|---|
| “Everything is too much.” | Tiny-Action Budget |
| “I do not know where to start.” | First-Move Rehearsal |
| “There is no point.” | Prediction Ticket |
| “I do not know what I want.” | Meaningful Mission Match |
| “The plan never fits my day.” | Calendar Puzzle |
| “I did not do it.” | Debrief and Remix |
Choose one or two exercises for a session. These are alternatives and building blocks, rather than a twelve-task programme.
12 behavioural activation activities for teens
1. Tiny-Action Budget
Focus: Choosing an achievable action without turning the session into a productivity contest.
Time and materials: 6–8 minutes; scrap paper and three counters or drawn circles.
Start with: “You have a small amount of energy to work with. What would be worth spending a little of it on?”
- Ask the teen to name something they miss or care about: drawing, a particular friendship, caring for a pet or learning something interesting.
- Together write four possible actions related to that interest. Include an extremely small option. For drawing, use “put the sketchbook on the desk”, “draw one shape”, “sketch for two minutes” and “finish a picture”.
- Let the teen assign each option an effort cost of one, two or three counters. These are their estimates, not your ratings. Set aside options that exceed today’s capacity.
- Invite them to choose one affordable action and say what it connects them with. Practise it now if possible; otherwise choose a real starting cue.
Worked example: Sam misses drawing but calls a whole picture impossible. They give “draw one shape” one counter and choose to do it after putting their school bag down. The outcome to review is whether starting was possible and whether they want another attempt, not whether the drawing is good.
Debrief: “Which option feels small enough and still worth doing?” “What would make it cost less energy?”
Adaptations: Use pointing rather than writing. In a group, budget for a fictional teen before making private choices. On video, type the options in chat. If even the smallest option feels too much, explore the barrier rather than reducing the budget as a punishment.
2. First-Move Rehearsal
Focus: Practising the beginning of an action when starting feels unclear.
Time and materials: 5–7 minutes; an object connected with a chosen activity.
Start with: “We are only rehearsing the first move. You can stop after that.”
- Choose an activity the teen wants to reconnect with and identify the first observable movement. Replace “do music” with “take the instrument out of its case”.
- Use an available object or a stand-in. Ask the teen to show the first move while you notice practical obstacles together.
- Pause immediately afterwards. Ask what made starting easier or harder; do not quietly expand the task into a full session of practice.
- Repeat once with one change, such as placing the object within reach. Agree whether the same first move belongs in a plan for home.
Worked example: Leah wants to play guitar again but the case is behind boxes. In session, they rehearse opening a case using a bag as a stand-in. The home plan becomes asking for help moving the boxes and taking the guitar out on Saturday, with no requirement to practise for an hour.
Debrief: “What is the first movement someone could actually see?” “What needs to be ready before that movement?”
Adaptations: For mobility or pain limitations, rehearse an accessible action chosen by the teen. Groups can demonstrate fictional first moves without disclosure. Telehealth works well when the teen chooses a nearby object and decides what stays off camera.
3. Prediction Ticket
Focus: Comparing expectations with the experience of one meaningful action.
Time and materials: 8–10 minutes; two small notes or a phone note.
Start with: “We do not need to prove you wrong. We can find out what this small version is like.”
- Agree on a safe, brief action connected with an interest or goal, such as doodling for two minutes or looking through photos of a favourite place.
- Before starting, record an expectation in the teen’s words: “It will feel pointless”, “Starting will be hard” or “I might enjoy one part”. Optionally estimate difficulty or interest from 0–10.
- Try the action for the agreed time. Keep the choice to stop and avoid prompting the teen to report a positive experience.
- Compare expectation with observation. Ask about difficulty, interest, connection or sense of achievement, then decide whether to repeat, change or drop this action.
Worked example: Noor predicts that drawing for two minutes will be difficult and uninteresting. Starting is difficult, but choosing colours feels mildly absorbing. They decide to leave two pencils ready and repeat the short version once. A flat mood afterwards is recorded honestly.
Debrief: “What matched your prediction?” “Was any part different enough to help us plan the next attempt?”
Adaptations: Use words, colours or gestures instead of numbers. In groups, run a neutral shared creative task and keep observations private. On video, each person can choose an activity using their own materials. Do not turn this into an unplanned anxiety exposure.
4. Meaningful Mission Match
Focus: Connecting an action with something the teen personally values.
Time and materials: 7–10 minutes; six handwritten cards.
Start with: “What would you like a little more room for in your life, even while things feel hard?”
- Write these starter cards: creativity, connection, learning, caring, independence and enjoyment. Invite the teen to replace any card with their own words.
- Have them keep one or two that matter now. A value does not have to be school achievement or something an adult approves of.
- For one card, generate three possible actions and cross out options that need unavailable money, transport, privacy or equipment.
- Choose a small remaining action. Ask the teen to explain the link between the card and the action, then agree on a time or cue.
Worked example: Alex chooses caring because they miss spending time with the family dog. “Take a long walk” is not accessible today. They choose sitting nearby and brushing the dog for two minutes, with the family’s agreement and the dog’s comfort in mind.
Debrief: “Whose goal is this?” “If it does not lift your mood straight away, could it still matter to you?”
Adaptations: Offer pictures or objects rather than written cards. Group members can invent a mission for a fictional character first. Use a shared screen online. Avoid assuming family contact, outdoor access or social activities are safe or available.
5. Barrier Detective
Focus: Identifying the practical conditions that make an action difficult.
Time and materials: 8–10 minutes; the case below and paper.
Start with: “Let us investigate the setup before deciding this is a motivation problem.”
- Read the case: “Riley wants to bake with their sibling. After school they stay in their room. The recipe needs ingredients they do not have, the kitchen is busy, and they expect to be criticised for making a mess.”
- Ask the teen to identify barriers under three headings: task size, resources and other people or surroundings.
- Generate one change for each barrier. Separate solvable obstacles from conditions that need adult support or make the activity unsuitable.
- Invite the teen to apply the same investigation to one of their own chosen actions. Agree on the first practical change rather than assigning the original task unchanged.
Worked example: For Riley, the revised plan is choosing a recipe using available ingredients and asking the sibling about a quiet kitchen time. If criticism remains a real threat, a different valued activity is chosen. The goal is to improve the conditions, not insist Riley pushes through.
Debrief: “What information is missing?” “Which part needs support rather than more effort?”
Adaptations: Use the fictional case throughout if disclosure feels difficult. Groups can each investigate one barrier category. Telehealth participants can annotate the case. Check sensory demands, executive-function needs, fatigue and accessibility alongside emotional barriers.
6. Two-Version Plan
Focus: Keeping a meaningful activity flexible when capacity changes.
Time and materials: 6–8 minutes; a note with two columns.
Start with: “What could this look like on an ordinary day, and what would be its smallest useful version?”
- Choose one personally meaningful activity, not a list of obligations.
- Make an ordinary-capacity version and a lower-capacity version. Both should connect with the same purpose and be specific enough to recognise.
- Identify a cue for choosing the version. Use the teen’s description of capacity, rather than demanding a particular mood score.
- Check that the smaller version is genuinely possible. Agree that changing versions is allowed and that rest or seeking support may sometimes be the appropriate choice.
Worked example: For reconnecting with music, Jay’s ordinary version is playing one familiar song. The lower-capacity version is taking the instrument out and trying one chord. Both happen after an afternoon snack if that is a workable cue; neither requires a performance or a perfect result.
Debrief: “Does the smaller version still connect with what matters?” “What tells you that today needs a different plan?”
Adaptations: Use two images instead of columns. Groups can build versions for a fictional interest before choosing privately. On video, use a phone note the teen can keep. A lower-capacity plan must not override medical advice, pain limits or needed rest.
7. Connection Bridge
Focus: Designing a small, safe step towards wanted social connection.
Time and materials: 8–10 minutes; paper or chat.
Start with: “Who feels safe enough, and what amount of contact would you actually choose?”
- Explore whether connection is something the teen wants more of. Do not assume everyone needs the same amount or type of contact.
- Choose a safe person or supported setting, then generate three contact options with different demands: sharing an image, asking a brief question or doing an activity alongside someone.
- Let the teen pick one and draft the exact opening. Rehearse it with you taking the other role.
- Plan for both a reply and no reply. The teen controls whether they send anything; review their chosen action separately from the other person’s response.
Worked example: Mila wants to reconnect with a cousin. They draft, “Saw this drawing and thought of you. No need to reply now.” They choose to send it later, with a plan to return to their own activity afterwards instead of repeatedly checking for a response.
Debrief: “Would this person and setting feel safe?” “Which part is in your control?”
Adaptations: Use a fictional recipient in groups and never require public sending. Telehealth can use a draft in a private note. For teens who prefer less conversation, consider a shared-interest activity with appropriate support. Do not encourage contact with someone bullying or pressuring them.
8. Activity Sampler
Focus: Discovering which accessible activities are worth trying again.
Time and materials: 10–12 minutes; three simple options and an optional timer.
Start with: “You are testing possibilities. You do not have to enjoy all of them.”
- Offer three brief options using available materials: draw a pattern, solve a small puzzle, or choose an image or song connected with an interest. Let the teen substitute their own options.
- Check sensory preferences, accessibility and privacy. Agree a short duration for each, with permission to skip or stop.
- Try each selected option. After each, ask for one observation about interest, effort, connection or achievement.
- Choose one option to repeat outside the session and make its next use specific. If none fits, use that information to look for a better option rather than assigning all three.
Worked example: Ben finds the puzzle frustrating and the music distracting, but enjoys designing a simple logo. Their next action is opening a drawing app and making one shape after lunch on Sunday. The session reveals a useful preference without requiring a mood improvement.
Debrief: “Which part held your attention, if any?” “What would make the next version fit better?”
Adaptations: Groups can use optional stations without ranking people’s results. On video, use household materials or screen-based options already available. For low energy, test just one option. Avoid introducing paid tools or activities the teen cannot access at home.
9. Calendar Puzzle
Focus: Placing a chosen action inside the teen’s actual day.
Time and materials: 7–10 minutes; a simple timeline.
Start with: “Where could this fit without pretending the rest of your day does not exist?”
- Draw tomorrow’s fixed points together: travel, school, appointments, care responsibilities and rest.
- Add one chosen meaningful action as a movable note. Try two possible positions and ask what happens immediately before and after each.
- Investigate practical constraints such as transport, supervision, device access or needing materials. Move or shrink the action accordingly.
- Agree on one cue, one realistic slot and a fallback. Ask the teen to explain the plan back in their own words.
Worked example: An after-school art plan clashes with collecting a younger sibling. Dani moves a two-minute sketch to the period after dinner and leaves a pencil ready. If dinner runs late, the fallback is drawing one line before putting the sketchbook away.
Debrief: “What would be happening just before you start?” “Which part of this timetable is outside your control?”
Adaptations: Use icons, objects or a spoken timeline. In groups, solve a fictional timetable before making private plans. Telehealth can use a shared drawing or phone calendar, without requiring access to personal calendar data. Do not fill every empty space with tasks.
10. Support-Request Rehearsal
Focus: Practising a specific request that makes an action possible.
Time and materials: 7–10 minutes; no special materials.
Start with: “What could someone do to help without taking over?”
- Choose a valued action blocked by a support need. Identify a trusted person and a specific request: transport, help finding materials, quiet company or a reminder agreed in advance.
- Build one sentence: “I want to try ___. Could you help by ___?” Make the request small and concrete.
- Role-play an agreeable response, then a realistic unavailable response. Practise a backup request or different plan.
- Let the teen decide whether and how to ask. Discuss confidentiality and appropriate caregiver involvement within your usual clinical arrangements.
Worked example: Taylor wants to visit the library but cannot travel independently. They practise, “Could we stop at the library for ten minutes on Saturday?” If that is not possible, the backup is asking a school librarian about borrowing a book during lunch.
Debrief: “What help would make a real difference?” “If they cannot help, what other option would still connect with your goal?”
Adaptations: Offer writing, messaging or pointing to a prepared sentence. In groups, role-play fictional requests rather than asking members to disclose family difficulties. On video, practise without sending a message. Avoid choosing a support person the teen experiences as unsafe.
11. Before-and-After Storyboard
Focus: Noticing the context and consequences of an action without a long monitoring sheet.
Time and materials: 7–10 minutes; three boxes drawn on paper or screen.
Start with: “Let us record what happened, including anything that did not help.”
- Draw boxes labelled Before, Action and After. Use one recent small action, or pair this with an action tried during the session.
- In Before, record the setting, energy, relevant thoughts and practical conditions. Use short words or sketches.
- In Action, record what the teen actually did rather than what they intended. In After, record mood, interest, achievement, connection or tiredness as relevant.
- Look for one detail that could guide the next attempt. Keep interpretation tentative: one example does not establish a reliable pattern.
Worked example: Chris records feeling tired before looking at an old comic, reading two pages, and feeling equally tired afterwards but interested in a character. The next plan keeps the action short. The observation is “this held my interest briefly”, rather than “reading fixes my mood”.
Debrief: “What changed, and what stayed the same?” “What do we want to notice next time?”
Adaptations: The therapist can write while the teen points or speaks. Groups can storyboard a fictional attempt. On video, use three chat messages. Avoid requiring repeated ratings if monitoring becomes burdensome; a brief observation can be enough.
12. Debrief and Remix
Focus: Learning from an attempted or missed action and changing the next plan.
Time and materials: 8–10 minutes; the previous plan.
Start with: “Whether it happened or not, there is something here that can help us design the next attempt.”
- Start with what actually happened, including partial starts and choices not to act. Use a neutral account without awarding or removing points.
- Ask what helped, what blocked the action and whether the action still matters to the teen. Consider the short-term relief and longer-term effects of postponing it without assuming every delay is harmful.
- Change one feature: size, cue, setting, materials, support or the action itself. This makes the next attempt easier to interpret.
- Write or speak the revised plan and decide what to review next time. If the obstacle needs practical or clinical support, address that rather than repeating the assignment.
Worked example: Pat did not sketch after dinner because the table was occupied and the pencils were missing. The revised plan keeps the same small drawing action but uses a notebook and pencil already kept together in a quiet spot. If drawing no longer matters, they choose a different interest.
Debrief: “What got in the way at the moment you were going to start?” “Which single change is worth testing?”
Adaptations: Use a fictional failed plan first to reduce disclosure pressure. Groups can suggest several redesigns, with the person choosing privately. Telehealth can review a spoken account rather than proof of completion. Missed actions are not a reason to shame the teen or escalate demands.
A 30-minute session using one meaningful action
- First 5 minutes: Check current capacity and context. Ask what the teen misses doing and whether anything makes the activity unsafe or inaccessible.
- Next 7 minutes: Use Tiny-Action Budget to choose a manageable version. For example, replace “get back into art” with “open the sketchbook and draw one shape”.
- Next 8 minutes: Run First-Move Rehearsal, followed by a Prediction Ticket if the teen wants to try the action. Observe what happens without requiring an improvement.
- Next 5 minutes: Use Calendar Puzzle to place the action in a realistic day. Check materials, privacy and any support needed.
- Final 5 minutes: Agree what to notice and how you will review it. A brief spoken observation next session is an option; a completed monitoring sheet is not required.
Using these activities in groups and online
In groups, begin with fictional cases, allow passing and keep individual plans private unless someone chooses to share. Avoid leaderboards based on mood, effort or homework completion. Sharing different solutions to a case can be useful without comparing whose depression work is going best.
For telehealth, use ordinary paper, a shared screen or a private phone note. Agree what can remain off camera. Do not assume everyone has a quiet room, unlimited data, art supplies or permission to message another person during the session.
Frequently asked questions
What are examples of behavioural activation for teenagers?
Examples include reconnecting with a creative interest for two minutes, planning a brief safe social contact, practising the first step of a valued activity and reviewing what happened afterwards. Choose actions with the teen according to meaning, capacity and context.
How do you use behavioural activation when a teen has no motivation?
Start by understanding what makes action difficult. Offer a very small, personally meaningful choice, rehearse the beginning and remove practical barriers where possible. Do not use “act before motivation” as a reason to override exhaustion, safety concerns or the teen’s consent.
What if the activity does not improve mood?
Record that honestly. Interest, connection, achievement and how manageable the action was may also be useful observations. Review patterns over time and adjust the plan with the teen. One activity is not a test of whether treatment will work.
Are behavioural activation activities the same as worksheets?
No. An activity is what the teen practises; a worksheet can help choose, organise or review that practice. These exercises work with plain paper or conversation. A printable resource can save preparation time when its format suits the teen.
Is behavioural activation supported by research with adolescents?
Research with young people is promising, but the evidence base is smaller than for adults and study limitations matter. A 2024 systematic review called for further adequately powered trials. The creative activities here are illustrative ways to practise BA principles, not individually validated treatments.
Printable resources and related guides
If you want prepared visual tools for choosing and planning small actions, explore the teen behavioural activation worksheet pack. It is a digital PDF resource. Check the product page and your intended use before purchasing.
- For monitoring, scheduling and worksheet formats across ages, see 20 behavioural activation worksheets.
- For a wider mix of depression-focused CBT techniques, see 15 CBT activities for depression.
- For other CBT skills, see 20 CBT activities for teenagers.
- For activities across different therapy goals, browse our teen therapy games and activities guide.
Research informing the approach
The clinical principles above are informed by adolescent behavioural activation research. These sources support the approach and its limitations; they do not evaluate the twelve original facilitation examples or the commercial worksheet pack.