Be Thankful
In this season of thanksgiving spend time teaching your children about gratitude. Studies have shown that gratitude is linked to happiness in children by age 5! In preteens, research shows grateful kids tend to be happier, more optimistic, and have better social support. In teens, research on gratefulness shows grateful teens are more engaged in schoolwork, use their strengths more often, are more satisfied with their lives, and have better grades. We all want happier children and one way to instill happiness may be by teaching gratitude.
Have dinnertime “thankful” conversations
Each night in the month of November, ask your children “What are you grateful/thankful for?” this will help the conversation go beyond the thanksgiving dinner table, and help children start to notice and think about the things in their lives that they have to be grateful for.
Set an example
Share a new item every night that you are grateful for. This would be a great time to incorporate praise for your children’s behavior, such as “I am thankful that Anna held the door open for our whole family today at the store” or “I am grateful that Henry picked up all of his toys without being asked today”. You can also demonstrate how you are thankful for non-task related things about your child such as “I am thankful for Leah’s smile, it brightens my day first thing in the morning” or “I am grateful for how creative Justin is, he always finds a solution to tricky situations”.
Talk about feelings
Help children understand themselves, their feelings, and gratefulness to a deeper extent by linking feelings to the conversation. Help children explore the emotions that they have linked to what they have been given. Share your own feelings, then help children explore their own. For example, “I knew I was grateful for Anna opening the door because my shoulders went from tense by my ears to relaxed and happy... Anna, you said you were grateful for Oreos in your lunch today, what has your body told you that you were grateful? … You smiled when you opened your lunch box and you tasted something delicious, sounds like you felt happy and excited for Oreos!”
Link Gratefulness to Doing
Teach your children about ways they can express appreciation throughout the month of November. Of course, we can help train our children to say thank you when someone does something we are thankful for, and those reminders may be beneficial this November. And there are other ways to express gratitude. Ask your children “Is there a way to show how you feel about this thing you are grateful for? Does the feeling you have about this make you want to share this feeling by giving to someone else?” Brainstorm as a family some ways that you can perform acts of kindness throughout the month of November. Things as big as serving together at your local non-profit or shelter, to holding doors open, doing yard work for a neighbor, swinging by a neighbor's house to say have a great day, writing thank you letters to first responders, sharing gifts they have received, donating old toys, and so many more.
Let us know how your family expressed gratitude this season! And if your family has the heart to donate time or items to Mommies in Need, please reach out to us! Happy Thanksgiving, we are grateful for your support!