Teaching Gratitude: Engaging Ways to Help Children Understand and Express Gratitude 🙏🌳
In today’s busy world, it’s important to teach children to slow down and appreciate what’s around them. Gratitude isn’t just about saying “thank you” – it’s about really valuing the people, experiences, and things that make our lives better. When children learn to be grateful, they become kinder, stronger, and happier. A great way to teach gratitude is through fun activities that help kids understand and express their thanks. Here are some simple and enjoyable ideas to get started.
Activity 1. Create a Gratitude Tree 🌳🍁
This craft can act as a visual representation of what your child is grateful for.
Materials:
A small tree branch or a large piece of cardboard (to create a tree)
Coloured paper or card (to make leaves)
String or ribbons
Pens, crayons, or markers
Scissors
Tape or glue
Instructions:
Place the branch in a vase, or if using cardboard, cut out a tree shape and stick it to the wall.
Cut out leaf shapes from the coloured paper.
Each day or week, ask your child to write or draw something they are thankful for on a leaf.
Attach the leaves to the tree with string or tape, watching your gratitude tree grow over time!
Activity 2. Make Thank-You Cards 🎨💌
Create ‘thank you’ cards as a heartfelt way for children to express and reflect on why they’re grateful.
Materials:
Blank cards or folded paper
Stickers, glitter, coloured pens, and crayons
Envelopes
Stamps (if posting the cards)
Instructions:
Ask your child to think of someone they’d like to thank. Maybe it's a teacher for helping them at school, or a friend who shared a toy.
Let them design their own thank-you card, using stickers, drawings, and decorations to personalise it.
Inside the card, encourage them to write a message of gratitude in their own words, even if it’s something simple like “Thank you for being kind.”
Hand-deliver or post the card to make someone's day!
Activity 3. Gratitude Journals 📓🌟
A gratitude jar is an easy and fun family activity. Children can write down things they are thankful for on small notes, and later the family can read them together.
Materials:
A notebook or blank journal
Pens, coloured pencils, or stickers
Instructions:
Set aside a time each day (perhaps in the evening) for your child to write or draw three things they are grateful for. This could be anything from their favourite toy to spending time with family.
Encourage them to add drawings or stickers to make the journal more personal.
On tougher days, they can look back through their journal to remind themselves of all the things they’ve been thankful for.
Activity 4. Gratitude Jar 🏺💛
A gratitude jar is a simple and fun activity that helps children practise gratitude by writing down little notes of thanks, which can then be read out together later.
Materials:
A large jar or container
Small slips of paper or sticky notes
Pens or pencils
Stickers or ribbon to decorate the jar
Instructions:
Decorate the jar together with stickers, ribbons, or paint.
Each day, have your child write down one thing they’re thankful for and place it in the jar.
At the end of the week or month, gather as a family to read the notes and reflect on all the positives in your lives.
Activity 5. Gratitude Scavenger Hunt 🕵️♂️🍂
A gratitude scavenger hunt teaches children to notice the good things around them in a fun, engaging way.
Instructions:
Create a list of things for your child to find that represent things they are grateful for. For example:
"Find something that makes you feel happy"
"Find something that smells nice"
"Find something that someone gave you"
Once they find each item, talk about why they’re grateful for it. This encourages mindful appreciation of the little things.
By adding gratitude into their daily lives through creative activities, thinking, and play, you help them build a positive, caring attitude that will stick with them as they grow. 🧡🙏
