Often – despite best efforts – children just don’t seem to appreciate sacrifices parents (or others) have made to give them things and opportunities. Is this a lost cause – or are there things that can help children see the “light” and start appreciating the little things (and the big things) that they have.
Talk It Up
Talk about the best part of the day. Even if it’s not around the dinner table or even at the same time – find some point in the day where each person can talk about the best part of their day. It’s important that the focus is on thinking about — and talking about — the good parts of the day.
Walk the Talk
They’re always watching – and emulating – you. Lead them in the best possible way – by example. If you do this, you’ll probably never have to consciously “teach” them about sharing, good deeds or giving back.
Identify the Good
This isn’t a time to brag or gloat, but a time to identify and articulate what they’ve done that helped someone. This isn’t to encourage kids to arrogantly boast about the good stuff they did but to make sure that everyone makes a conscious effort to do something good for others. It can be something that requires little of you, such as holding the door for a stranger or something that requires effort and sacrifice, like going out of your way to help a friend or going over and above to do an excellent job at school. Thinking about these good acts helps kids to understand how to be a positive, helpful part of the family/community/world.
Create Random Acts
Pick a day for the whole family to do good deeds. This is an excellent way to “pay it forward” and to share the importance of doing this with children. Your spontaneous gestures or random acts of kindness will be appreciated by those on the receiving end and you and your family will be rewarded in surprising ways.
Become Yearlong “Holiday Helpers”
Don’t just help folks during the holidays. Keep it going the whole year through. There are always holiday “service projects” going on. Everyone feels duty-led to give out of their abundance. Who says this should be reserved for holidays? No one. There are plenty of organizations that would love to have year-round help. Local food pantries, Toys for Tots, local meal delivery – you may even want to adopt a family to help on a regular basis. You can also make financial donations. These are needed and appreciated, but hands-on help is a way for your family to come together as a unit to help others in a very tangible way. It’s a great way to teach children about giving back and the importance of community.
Be Part of Something Bigger
Thanksgiving may only come once a year, but there are 52 weeks a year for participating in #ThankfulThursday. Use social media to share what you’re thankful for and energize everyone else with your thoughts. Don’t stop with social media. Encourage sharing thankfulness with friends, family and strangers in every way, every day. You can even have a dry erase board in your home so each family member can write what they are thankful for every Thursday. Take a picture of your Thursday writings and post it on social media. Keep a journal of your pictures so you can look back a remember blessings. Perhaps this yearly reminiscence of blessings could become a new Thanksgiving tradition.
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