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In a world where it seems that everyone is playing the comparison game, it’s easy to become discontent. This is true of adults and kids alike. Gratitude activities for kids can be great reminders of the things in our life that make it beautiful. 

Teaching kids to be grateful for what they have can revive the joy in your family and lead to a new perspective that encourages you to put others first.

In this post, I’ll explore 5 tips for teaching kids to be grateful. I’ve also included 15 inspiring gratitude activities for kids that you can try with your own family.

Teaching Kids to Be Grateful: 15 Gratitude Activities for Kids

5 Tips for Teaching Kids to Be Grateful

1. Model Gratitude

You as the parent set the example for the behaviors you want your kids to imitate. Make sure that you remember to say “thank you” to others. Your kids are far more likely to show thankfulness when they see you doing the same.

Also, be aware of how your own attitude influences that of your kids. If you are constantly complaining and making negative comments about every situation, your kids will start to imitate that discontentment.

I’m not saying you have to be falsely positive about everything. Whenever you face disappointment and frustration you should be able to express that in a healthy way. Just be careful that you are not always defaulting to expressing only the negative side. Look for things that you can be grateful for and help your kids to do the same.

      2. Be Consistent

With consistency, you can make it a habit to express thankfulness. Teach your kids to say, “thank you”, even for the “little” things. Let your kids help you write thank you notes when they receive a gift. 

Later in this post, you’ll find more ideas for teaching kids to be grateful. These gratitude activities for kids can help show them how to be more grateful everyday.

     3. Tell Your Kids Why You’re Grateful for Them

Your kids need to hear how thankful you are for them. Thank them for what they do to help the family, but even more than that, let them know you’re thankful for who they are!

You can do this by writing a note or a card and leaving it somewhere they will see it. Or, you can just pull them close and tell them- often– how thankful you are that you’re their parent. 

Don’t save it for a special occasion. Show your thankfulness for your kids often.

      4. Serve Others Together

Whenever I start feeling sorry for myself or begin to feel ungrateful, nothing obliterates those feelings of selfishness like focusing on meeting someone else’s needs. Not only does serving others take the focus off of self, but it fills you with such joy to put others first.

Read through the list of gratitude activities for kids later in this post for some great ideas for how you and your family can serve others.

      5. Create a Kids’ Budget

When my kids started earning and managing their own money, they quickly learned not to take things for granted. The items that my kids worked and saved for are the things they appreciate most. 

If your kids are older, start allowing them to earn their own money. Then, teach them to make a simple budget for managing their money. Not only is this a great life skill for them, but they’ll have a new appreciation for those things that they work for and purchase themselves. 

15 Inspiring Gratitude Activities for Kids

If you’re looking for more ideas for raising grateful kids, here are 15 of my favorite gratitude activities for kids. 

1. Gratitude Tree

I love the idea of a gratitude tree. I’ve seen these displayed as centerpieces at Thanksgiving, but you could use them anytime as a tool for teaching kids how to be more grateful.

 You can make your own gratitude tree using a glass vase, some small stones, a small branch, paper leaves, and string.

Start by placing the branch upright in the vase. Use the small stones in the bottom of the vase to keep the branch steady. If desired, you can paint the branch white before placing it in the vase.

Cut leaf shapes out of colorful paper. On each leaf, have a family member write something they are thankful for. Hang the leaves on the gratitude tree and display it as a centerpiece and a reminder of gratitude for kids.

There’s a great example of a gratitude tree craft on Kids Activities Blog.

 

     2.  Gratitude Scavenger Hunt

I love this idea from All Natural Adventures. It’s a Gratitude Nature Scavenger Hunt . You and your kids get a bag and go for a hike on a beautiful day. The scavenger list includes looking for items that

• Make you smile
• Are your favorite color
• Would make a friend happy
• You are thankful for
• Are interesting to look at
• You could use to make a heart shape

Then, bring all of your items back home and share what you found! This is a great gratitude activity for younger kids that helps them see things to be thankful for are all around them.

For more information and printable scavenger hunt list, visit All Natural Adventures.

      3. Gratitude Stones

I love this gratitude stone craft from Craft Your Happiness! You find a handful of small smooth stones and paint each one with a heart. Next, place them in a burlap sack and take them with you.

The idea is that you place these stones in places you will see them – your car, outside your house, in the kitchen, etc. Each time you see one of the stones it reminds you to take a moment and hold thankfulness in your heart.

It comes with a precious poem that you can print out here at Craft Your Happiness.

 

   4. M&M Gratitude Game

You can adapt this game for other colorful candies like Skittles, or a game of pick up sticks.

The idea is that you pick out one candy (or one pickup stick) and the color of the item will match how you respond.

If you draw a red one, you name a person you are thankful for. If you draw a yellow, you name a memory that you’re thankful for. 

You can create your own color key, or you can print these card templates from Kara Creates

 

   

 5. Gratitude Pumpkin Craft

This is an easy craft that you can make with kids to encourage them to be more grateful. All you need is orange and green construction paper, a marker, brown and green pipe cleaners, and a stapler or brads to assemble the pumpkin.

Cut the orange paper into 8 equal 1 inch thick strips. 

Help your child write what they are thankful for on each strip of paper. (ex: “I am thankful for my family”)

Lay 4 of the strips in a cross shape, with the ends of the paper meeting in the middle.

Lay the other 4  strips in an “X” that fills in the gap made by the cross.

Use a stapler or brad to connect the ends of all the paper strips. I didn’t have these on hand, so I used a glue stick and it worked just fine. Make sure that the writing can be seen.

 Bring the ends of 2 strips that are across from each other together to form a round shape. Make sure the writing is visible on the outside of the pumpkin.

Do the same with the other 3 pairs of strips, creating a sphere shape. Connect all of the strips at the top as you did on the bottom. 

I used brown pipe cleaners for the stem and green pipe cleaners for the vine. I attached these and a green paper leaf to the top to complete the pumpkin.

 

 

 

6. Gratitude Journal for Kids

Another activity that encourages thankfulness is a gratitude journal for kids. 

A kids gratitude journal gives them the chance to think more deeply about the things that they have to be grateful for. You can use simple writing prompts to get them started. Here are some example writing prompts for a gratitude journal for kids:

1. Who is someone special in your life that you are thankful for? Why are you thankful for them?
2. What is a place you love to go? Why is it special to you?
3. Share about something that someone did for you that you’re grateful for. How can you show them your gratitude?

This gratitude journal can be an activity for your entire family, not just for your kids. Adults and kids alike can all benefit from these small reminders of how to be more grateful. 

If you want some more prompts for your gratitude journal for kids, visit this post from We Are Teachers.

 

 

7. Turkey Feather Craft

This is an adorable and easy Thanksgiving craft that’s also useful for teaching kids to be grateful. You can transform this paper turkey craft into a reminder or gratitude for kids.

For this craft, I used half of a paper plate, construction paper, wiggle eyes, Elmer’s glue, and a marker.

On each tail feather, help your kids write something they are thankful for. You can display them as a reminder of all of your blessings.

 

 

    8. Thank You Notes for the Family

This gratitude activity would be great to do as a surprise. 

Write a brief thank you note for each member of your family. Make sure and leave it someplace they will see it easily so it’ll brighten their day. You can leave your notes on their night stand, on the bathroom mirror, or in their lunch box.

Sometimes the best way to encourage gratitude for kids is to show gratitude yourself.

 

 

9. Help Others Together

Take time to serve others together as a family. Here are some ideas for service projects that you can perform together:

• Gather and donate food to a local food bank
• Collect and purchase toys for a toy drive 
• Help an elderly neighbor with yard work or household projects
• Bake and deliver cookies to friends and neighbors

Teaching kids to be grateful can be as simple as finding ways to put others first. 

 

10. Family Portrait

If you need gratitude activities for kids that preschoolers can do, here is a simple one.

Have everyone (including grown ups) draw a portrait of the family. Have your kids include any special person in their life. Then, take turns sharing things you love and appreciate about each person.

 

11. Thank Those in Public Service

Don’t wait for a holiday. Have your kids make homemade cards for teachers, cafeteria staff, police officers, or any other people who serve and help them. 

Another way kids can show gratitude is by making signs and posters for those who help your family on a regular basis like garbage collectors, mail carriers, or delivery workers. Display the signs where they can easily be seen. 

 

12. Family History

Tell your story! Show your kids pictures of when you were a child, and talk about how you came to be a family. Also include pictures and history of other family members including your kids themselves.

Let them know where they come from. They’ll appreciate their family even  more.

 

 

13. Gratitude Board

Create a display of thankfulness by making a gratitude board. It can be as simple as displaying post-it notes on a poster or index cards on a bulletin board.

Allow each member of the family to write down one thing they’re grateful for on a card or sticky note and display it on the board. You can add new cards to the board each day. 

Include new experiences and acts of kindness as they happen. Putting your blessings on display helps keep your family mindful of practicing thankfulness every day.

 

14. Gratitude Conversation Starters 

If you’re having trouble getting your kids to articulate things they’re thankful for, you can use gratitude conversation starters.

A simple way to do this is to create a list of thought-provoking questions that will help kids become focused on the good things in their lives. Then, cut each conversation starter into a separate strip and place them in a jar.

Take turns drawing out a strip and reading it. Allow each person to respond before drawing another one.

You can find more details and a free printable list of questions here at Creative Family Fun

 

   15. Creative Story: “A Day Without”…

This is a creative gratitude activity for kids that uses lots of imagination.

Guide kids to write their own short story or narrative entitled “a day without…”. Complete the story title with something that they consider to be essential like a telephone, a car, the sun, or gravity. This is a creative way to get kids thinking about the things in life that they might take for granted.

 

The Benefit of Gratitude Activities for Kids

These are just a few simple ways for teaching kids to be grateful. These gratitude activities for kids can be done any time of year. 

Participating in these activities as a family will bring you closer together and help the entire family become more grateful day to day.