This or That Questions for Teens: School, First Jobs and Friends: how it works
These this or that questions for teens are written for ages 13 to 17: 110 short pairs about high school, first jobs, friends and what comes after graduation. Tap a side to vote and the card shows how the room split. None is about dating, looks or grades, and the full list is printed under the deck.
Play it in advisory or on a bus
In a small group, pass one device so each player taps a side. In a classroom, read both options aloud and have students walk to one side of the room, so the two crowds are the vote. Skip swaps any pair a player would rather not answer.
Seven chips, from homeroom to move-in day
High school days and Studying and tests (16 pairs each) stay inside the building: Cram the night before or a little each day. First jobs and money (16) sticks to work a teenager might do, such as Work the register or stock the shelves. After high school (16) holds the biggest choices: Trade school or four-year degree.
Tips
Start on Easy, 35 quick picks such as Earbuds or over-ear headphones. The 30 Hard pairs take longer: Summer job or summer volunteering.
Advisers can open a planning talk with After high school. A tap on Gap year is a move in a game, not a decision, so ask why and move on.
Coaches: tap Sports, clubs and stages (15 pairs) on the ride to a meet. Friends and hanging out (16) and Music, shows and games (15) are the lightest.
Questions and answers
What ages are these this or that questions for?
Ages 13 to 17. The pairs assume a class schedule, a first job in sight and thoughts past graduation. For the jobs group the editors read the U.S. Department of Labor's age requirements page at dol.gov on 2026-09-19: as a general rule, federal law sets 14 as the minimum age for employment, with exceptions, and the stricter of state and federal rules applies. The deck is a game, not advice on work rules.
Are these clean enough for a classroom or a youth group?
Yes. No pair is about dating, crushes, looks, bodies or grades, and none asks a player to rank the people in the room. No app, game, show or brand is named, so no student is left out for not knowing one.
How is this different from the kids deck?
The kids deck is written for ages 5 to 12, with sight words and recess. This one trades those for block schedules, shift work, driving and college choices, and its Hard pairs are trade-offs, such as Job close to home or job that pays more. No pair appears in both.
Homework right after school or homework after dinner?
Library table or bedroom desk?
Oral presentation or written report?
Review sheet or review video?
Rewrite your notes or reread your notes?
Slides presentation or poster presentation?
Summer class or summer off?
Teach a friend or quiz yourself?
Timed practice test or untimed review?
Tutor a classmate or get tutored?
First jobs and money 16
Babysitting or dog walking?
Busy shift or slow shift?
Cash in an envelope or money in an account?
Interview in person or interview on video?
Job close to home or job that pays more?
Movie theater counter or pool snack stand?
Mow lawns or wash cars?
Save for a car or save for a trip?
Save it all or spend a little?
Scoop ice cream or bag groceries?
Summer job or summer volunteering?
Tutor younger kids or referee youth games?
Weekend shifts or after-school shifts?
Work the register or stock the shelves?
Work uniform or your own clothes?
Work with friends or work with new people?
Friends and hanging out 16
Apologize first or wait it out?
Basement hangout or backyard hangout?
Bike there or get a ride?
Friend who's blunt or friend who's gentle?
Friends from school or friends from elsewhere?
Friends since kindergarten or friends since this year?
Give advice or just listen?
Group chat or one-on-one chat?
Hang out at home or hang out in town?
Mall food court or park picnic table?
Matching costumes or solo costume?
Photo booth pictures or candid pictures?
Plans made weeks ahead or plans made that day?
Reply in a minute or reply tonight?
Share a playlist or share a meme?
Split the snacks or bring your own?
Sports, clubs and stages 15
Art show or poetry slam?
Debate team or mock trial?
Food drive or park cleanup?
Friday night game or saturday morning game?
Gym workout or outdoor run?
Lead role or stage crew?
Personal best or first place?
Pit orchestra or pep band?
Play in the game or cheer in the stands?
Practice before school or practice after school?
Relay race or solo race?
Run the club or join the club?
School newspaper or school podcast?
Tournament weekend or free weekend?
Varsity bench or junior varsity starter?
Music, shows and games 15
Album start to finish or shuffle everything?
Co-op game or versus game?
Concert floor or concert seats?
Earbuds or over-ear headphones?
Handheld console or big-screen console?
Learn the dance or learn the lyrics?
Live stream or edited video?
Lyrics first or beat first?
Make videos or watch videos?
Opening night or wait for streaming?
Playlist or podcast?
Short videos or long videos?
Show everyone watches or show nobody knows?
Story mode or online multiplayer?
Watch with friends or watch alone?
After high school 16
Big university or small college?
Campus tour in person or virtual campus tour?
College near home or college far away?
Dorm room or apartment with roommates?
Gap year or straight to school?
Highway driving or city driving?
Know your major now or figure it out later?
Learn to cook or learn to budget?
License at sixteen or wait a few years?
Old car that's yours or new car you share?
Parallel park or three-point turn?
Roommate you know or random roommate?
Stick shift or automatic?
Study abroad or stay on campus?
Trade school or four-year degree?
Work for yourself or work for a company?
How this list was compiled: Written for this site by the editors; nothing was copied from another list. Every card is a pair of options of one to four words, so both fit on a button. The deck is for ages 13 to 17 and keeps to seven lanes: high school days, studying and tests, first jobs and money, friends, sports and clubs, music and shows and games, and the years after high school. No card is about dating, crushes, bodies, looks, grades a player has earned or what a family can afford, and no card asks a player to rank the people in the room. No app, game, show, song, school or company is named. The site's word blocklist includes phone and text for the younger decks; this deck was written without either word, and Group chat or one-on-one chat is the nearest it comes. Each pair was read against the site's family-safe rule (nothing sexual, no alcohol or drugs, no self-harm, no dares, nothing illegal, no real people, no put-downs), and the whole list was run through the word blocklist and a brand-name list on 2026-09-19 and came back clean. Every pair was compared by script on 2026-09-19 with every other deck on this site, including data/this-or-that-questions.json, data/this-or-that-generator.json, data/this-or-that-questions-for-kids.json and data/would-you-rather-questions-for-teens.json: no pair appears in any of them, and pairs that came close on a second, looser pass were replaced. The First jobs and money group names ordinary part-time and odd jobs only. The editors read https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/youthlabor/agerequirements on 2026-09-19, where the U.S. Department of Labor says that, as a general rule, the Fair Labor Standards Act sets 14 as the minimum age for employment and limits the hours worked by minors under 16, that there are many exceptions, and that where state law and the federal law overlap, the one more protective of the minor applies. The page is cited for that general rule only; this deck is a game and not advice about work rules. No card has a right answer. Easy, Medium and Hard are an editor's judgment: easy is a quick preference, medium takes a beat, and hard is a choice a teenager may really be weighing. Licence: own work