Creative ideas for kids to express gratitude

Giving thanks daily should be a ritual that everybody practices, it takes a little time and helps us see the good things we have and can do. Thankfulness helps us to focus on the positive and may help us to be happier, as we acknowledge the positive moments in the day no matter how insignificant. These few ideas can help to encourage your kids to be thankful and to develop ways to express gratitude.

Gratitude jar

This activity you can do each weekend or every morning if you want to, all you need is a jar and some paper to write on. The jar can be decorated with a ribbon or anyway the kids like. Write onto the paper, just a single word or phrase that says what you are thankful for and place in the jar. You can write about things that made you laugh, the beauty of nature or daily blessings. This activity can be done over a course of days, a month or even a year. When the jar is full you can gather everyone together and read the pieces of paper and enjoy and remember the ideas you wrote down.

Gratitude wall

Image credit: (Gratitude wall)

There are quite a few ideas out there for creating your own gratitude wall for kids, but simple and easy are the things I look for when attempting anything like this, otherwise it will never get done. The first idea is to get a chalkboard and place it onto a wall where appropriate and to write your gratitude ideas onto it every day. The other idea I came across uses only two items that everybody usually has in their homes. A roll of wrapping paper and some felt tip pens. Cut out a fair size piece of wrapping paper and stick this onto the wall, place the pens in a jar and everyday write onto the paper what you are grateful for that day or you can do this only once a week where you get everybody together and write onto the wall, the point is to fill up the paper by the end of the year. A great way to express gratitude.

Another idea that I have just discovered, is to use blackboard vinyl, which can be found in stores such as ‘The Crazy Store’. This includes a rectangle piece of board you can stick up on the wall and some assorted colours of chalk.

30 days of gratitude

A very easy way for the whole family to write down what they are thankful for each day onto a 30-day chart. Each family member gets their own chart with 30 blanks spaces and each day, write something you're grateful for in the blank space. This can be done at any time during the year and if you forget to do this for a couple of days you can just start where you left off the previous time.

30 Days of Gratitude PDF download

Gratitude games

Alphabet dinner game: This is an easy game, come up with things you are thankful for that starts with each letter of the alphabet.

20 gratitude questions game: One person must think of something that they are grateful for, and the rest of the family must ask questions to get to the correct answer. The questions must be stated so the answers can only be a yes or no and the number of questions allowed is 20.

Kids own ideas to express gratitude

Older children can offer up their own ideas as to how to show and share their gratitude. Ideas such as collecting tinned food to give away, visiting an old age home, making a meal for a family in need and coming up with ideas to make and collect money for a charity organization. Gratitude can also start at home by doing something nice for mom and dad or doing chores around the house. Even just by giving thanks before each meal is a simple way to stay thankful.