Thanksgiving is coming soon. For most people, it’s a day to feast with friends and family. Still, it is important to remember how this holiday was born and what it actually means. Teaching children gratitude is one of the most important lessons we can provide. If you’re looking for ways to teach your children gratitude, these ideas will help.
1. Luke 11:17-19- Children will learn gratitude as you read the story of the ten lepers that Jesus healed. Of those 10, only one came back to say thank you.
2. Psalm 100 – This psalm is about gratitude and is perfect for teaching children an attitude of gratitude.
lessons from life
3. Family Appreciation – Sit down with your children and discuss the true meaning of family and what it means to you. Encourage your family to be thankful and tell them directly how much you appreciate them having you. Explain to your children that some people just don’t get along with their families at all, but they should consider themselves blessed to have a loving family.
4. Appreciate your friends – Remind your children to appreciate their friends. Sit down with them and talk about each friend and what they mean to them. Tell them how much you appreciate having good friends and tell them to tell their friends that you appreciate them.
5. Appreciate your pets – How can you not love the furry creatures in our lives? They give us unconditional love and fun every day. Not only that, but God has placed them in our lives because He has entrusted us to cherish them. Remind kids to appreciate their furry friends.
6. Be grateful to have a job – If you have older teenagers, teach them to be grateful for work and that they can earn their own money. Be a good example of work ethic and responsibility to them. One day, when someone asks where they got that work ethic from, they can proudly say they got it from you. Most importantly, teach your children to be grateful for having a job, no matter what it is.
7. Be grateful for the right to vote – Once again, if you have older teens, teach them to be grateful for the right to vote. To help you understand what a privilege this right is, please give examples of other countries that do not have this right.
8. Appreciate authority figures and leaders – Teach children to appreciate authority figures and leaders. Start conversations about who the important influences in their lives are (teachers, coaches, youth leaders, pastors, etc.) and what those people mean to them. Have each person write a note telling you how grateful you are to have them in your life.
9. Have an attitude of gratitude – Model an attitude of gratitude for yourself. If you have a gratitude journal, show it to them and encourage them to start their own. If you’re having breakfast together in the morning, ask your partner what they’re grateful for that day. Maybe you can meet a particular friend who is not in class during recess. Maybe your teacher will postpone the quiz to another day, or you might have to use your notes for a quiz on a more difficult topic. Who knows, maybe you’ll get to work with your favorite colleague that day. Then share what you are grateful for that day.
10. Thank God every day – When you wake up in the morning, thank God for waking you up for another day. Teach your children to do the same. It reminds us that tomorrow is not guaranteed and encourages us to embrace each day, both the good and the bad. Remind me to thank God when something goes well in my day, when I have a bad day, and in bad times, teach me how to ask God what He is trying to teach me.
11. Be grateful for the big things and the small things – My grandmother always said, “It’s the little things in life,” and it’s so true. We don’t think about it much, but we need to appreciate the big and small things in life and teach our children to do the same.
There are many things in our lives that we take for granted. Hot water for showering. food on our table. Our car has gasoline. The money (more or less) in our bank accounts. These are big things.
Then there are the little things, like finding a much-needed item on sale at the grocery store, stumbling across a $20 bill when your last dollar is gone, or a kind word or compliment from a stranger. These are the little things that you need to pay attention to and teach your children to appreciate.
12. Thank You to Our Military Members – We have freedom because of the willing men and women who fight for freedom on the front lines of our armed forces. Teach your children to appreciate military members and all they do for us.
13. Appreciate the people in your community – Our community is full of people who help make the world a better place. Be a role model and teach your children how to treat people who work in the service industry, such as fast food workers, grocery store clerks, and janitors. Show respect when dealing with them and acknowledge that their work is just as important as that of a doctor or lawyer.
Teach them to appreciate and respect police officers and first responders. Remind students that they should appreciate everyone involved in any job and that everyone deserves respect. Without people to do these service jobs, people wouldn’t be able to eat, grocery store shelves would be empty of food, and the places of business we frequent would be less clean.
14. Be grateful for setbacks – Our society makes setbacks very difficult for children to swallow. The pressure from society and peers to be perfect is incredible. No wonder children can’t handle small setbacks and automatically feel like failures.
Therefore, we need to teach them to be grateful for setbacks. Explain to them that setbacks aren’t necessarily a bad thing. Something may happen for them to learn something, or the timing may not be right and something great happens later. Can you share an example of a setback in your life that led to something bigger? Setbacks don’t necessarily mean doom. Sometimes it shows that something better happens.
There are all kinds of lessons you can teach your children about the Thanksgiving holiday and the meaning of gratitude. We raise kind, grateful, and empathetic children who live by example and are ready to show the world the meaning of gratitude and make the world a better place.
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Carrie Laurence is a freelance writer and author. Her work has been featured in Crosswalk, iBelieve, Huffington Post, and The Penny Hoarder. She is also the author of three children’s books, three pretty romance books, one romance novel, three poetry collections, and one nonfiction book. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking, baking, reading, and spending time with her husband and cute cat, Cupcake. For more information about Carrie and her writing, please visit www.carrielowrance.com.
