In the midst of this wonderful time of year, many of our thoughts and our kids’ thoughts can become heavily pervaded with thoughts of wanting more. Near-constant sales from Thanksgiving through December keep consumerism at the forefront of our minds as we prepare for the Christmas season. While gift-giving is a beautiful way to express love, it can also become overwhelming, for kids as much as for parents. I wanted to share a few of the amazing resources I’ve found help with raising grateful kids.
Below are 5 Simple Tips for Raising Grateful Kids
- Read books about gratitude and thankfulness together. See my list of 10 of our favorite children’s books about gratitude.
- Take a few minutes at dinner time or bedtime to take turns sharing something that each of you is grateful for. By verbally sharing and involving your kids, you’re helping them think more about the good and positive parts of their day.
- Create engaging ways to discuss things you each feel grateful for, such as writing thank you notes to family members, friends, teachers, neighbors, etc. Personally, I’m a big fan of the activity boxes from Kri-Kit (see more about their monthly subscription boxes here). Their November box included everything you need to make a cute thank you note stationary kit, and a thankful tree. You can re-create these on your own, for a fun and exciting way to help your kids express gratitude.
- Find ways to serve others as a family, and expose your children to others in need. By looking outside of themselves, they’re able to better recognize their own blessings. Check out this website for service ideas in your area https://www.justserve.org/
- Involve your kids in working around the house with you. It will take more time and seem like more of a hassle than it’s worth sometimes. Just remember by involving them, you’re ingraining the expectation to contribute to your home and family. The more you involve your kids the more grateful they will feel.
Gratitude Journals & Book Recommendation
I also highly recommend this book by Janice Kaplan, called The Gratitude Diaries. Kurt and I read it together this year. It’s very powerful! She shares many applications for how she changed her own life by increasing her mindfulness about gratitude. The book is written based on her own personal experiences, coupled with in-depth research on the power of gratitude. It is astounding! Keeping a gratitude journal has been highly-touted, and research shows it has the ability to re-wire mental thought processes. If you’re interested in starting your own gratitude journal, I linked a simple and beautiful one below.
For other amazing resources, read this comprehensive article, Eight Tips to More Grateful Kids. The more we exemplify gratitude in our own lives, the more our kids will learn how to do the same. I wish you and your families and beautiful holiday season, and would love to hear how you help your kids to be grateful.
Sincerely,
