If there’s anything children need to learn in school more than physics, chemistry, Chaucer, or how to pass standardized tests, it’s childcare. Statistics show that the majority of them will eventually become parents, while the majority will not become astrophysicists. (Schools are pretty famous for not preparing people for things that they will really experience in life, after all; not that these subjects are not important for the few who go on to actually use them in life.) It’s kind of ridiculous that students are required to take so many math, science, English, and social studies credits—at least a third of which, if not more, they will not be using in life—while childcare, cooking, money budgeting, and other life skills courses are “optional.”

Given the high dropout rates across the nation and the probability of so many people becoming parents, it’s essential that tomorrow’s parents be prepared today—both at home and in the classroom. There are some very simple ways to this, of course, if we just implement them. We really need kids to have comprehensive sex education, at least one childcare course, and good health courses in order to be ready for the demands of a family (not to mention the demands of simple self-care). These should definitely be in place in every school.

Parents and other caretakers, of course, can help by doing the following with their teens.

• Teach teens how to care for children. Basic childcare classes are available at the American Red Cross and other youth centers. Parents can teach how to feed, clothe, bathe, burp, change, and generally care for infants and children.
• Allow teens to babysit their younger brothers or sisters. This is one of the best experiences a parent can give their children in preparation for life. However, do not leave them alone with children until they are fully prepared and have spent lots of time learning with you “on the job.”
• Model the parenting attributes you wish your children to develop, such as compassion, unconditional love, critical thinking, and other characteristics.
• When a teen becomes of age and wants a job, help him or her seek out employment at childcare centers. This will be more meaningful work that will help prepare him or her for the “real world” than any fast food job. (Though fast food jobs can teach many important skills as well, depending on the company.)
• Have teens devise a budget for a month. Let them use your check and plan out how the money will be spent between groceries, bills, their baby brother’s diapers, and transportation costs.