8 Ways to Teach Gratitude to Kids

Feeling and expressing gratitude can significantly increase our ability to feel happiness, build strong relationships, and deal with difficulties. These are things we all want for our children. Making a habit of recognizing the good in our lives and taking the time to appreciate those who have helped contribute to that good is well worth our efforts. Here are some activities you can try to implement to help you and your children or students feel and express thankfulness.

1. A Rose and a Thorn

At the end of the day, sit down with your students or children and let them say a thorn and a rose (could also do a high and a low). Just say something difficult they are dealing with and something good that is happening.

2. Gratitude Jars

Get a glass jar for each member of your class or family. Cut strips of paper and place them in a basket with some pens. Each day set aside 5 or 10 minutes for kids to write things they are thankful for about each person and put them in the jar. At the end of the month or on Thanksgiving, let the kids open their jars and enjoy all the thank-you notes!

3. Gratitude Advent Calendar

Buy a box of chocolates or another candy your child or students like. Each day the students get to take a candy and say one thing they are thankful for while they eat the candy.

4. Gratitude Trees

Paint, draw, or cut out a tree on butcher paper. Then cut out leaves to glue onto the tree. Write things you are thankful for on the leaves and glue them to the tree. You can also set up a Christmas tree on the first of November and decorate it with paper loops that say things you are grateful for, then after Thanksgiving take the loops down and decorate the tree for Christmas.

5. Three Daily Gratitudes

This is good exercise for kids and adults. Take a few minutes each day and write three things you are thankful for that day. This can also be done verbally for kids who are too young to write.

6. A Dozen Daily Thank Yous

Give your child a chart and see if they can say thank you twelve times a day, every day for one week. You could have a contest to see who can complete the chart first. Make sure the thank yous are genuine!

7. Thank You Notes

This is a simple one and one that everyone already knows, but sometimes sitting down with your kids and having them write out something nice for someone who has helped them is just such a kind thing to do!

8. Secret Service

This could also be secret classmates or secrete siblings. Each child picks the name of another child from a jar. For a week the child does nice things for the person whose name they drew. During the week the kids are trying to notice all the nice things others are doing for them in hopes that they can figure out who drew their name.