How to teach kids gratitude during the holidays

Why is it important to teach kids gratitude during the holidays?

Teaching kids gratitude during the holidays is important because it helps them focus on what they have rather than what they desire. This upbeat outlook on life makes people happy. People are happier when they are grateful.

We can find something to be thankful for in almost every situation.

However, holidays revolve around consumption, and those who want us to consume work hard to convince us that we require more of everything.

Teaching children to be grateful during the holidays is a battle against the entire world. However, it can make them happier during the holidays and in general.

If all of this consumerism and mindless gift-giving during the holidays makes you uneasy, you are not alone.

The holidays are an excellent time to teach your children to be more critical of how we are supposed to celebrate and express love.

How to Teach Children to Be Thankful During the Holidays

During the holidays, give what you don’t need.

We all know that wealthy people are frequently less grateful and happier.

We can use the holidays to see if we can get by with less. Make use of our advantageous position to assist others.

Declutter everything, not just the kids’ toys. Set a good example by evaluating what you have that you don’t need but that could benefit someone else.

Putting things in large bags and donating them to charity feels almost the same to me as throwing them away. By doing so, you are delegating the task of finding someone to use those items to someone else.

When you give things you don’t need to someone in your life, you are finding a new home for them before they are donated or thrown away.

Concentrate on the giving rather than the decluttering. So give clean and organized bundles, perhaps with an extra kind note.

Don’t replace things you no longer need after you’ve found new homes for them.

During the holidays, focus on helping others

There can never be too much gratitude and love-giving. The holidays are not the only time when we should care for others, but they are an excellent opportunity.

Helping others could mean inviting a friend who is going through a difficult time and spending time with him doing things he enjoys.

Participate in an organization, or even better, organize people to do good.

Make an extra effort to look after your family, especially the elderly. During this time of year, they frequently feel lonely. Many people have lost loved ones with whom they once celebrated. Celebrating with your children will bring them great joy.

Invite someone you don’t know to join you in your celebration. There are a lot of people who are lonely.

Celebrate the holidays in your own way

There are many aspects of the holidays that I dislike, but most of them can be tweaked to discourage greed and encourage kindness without resorting to consumerism.

The holidays are a time of light in the dark winter for our family. We like to celebrate being waste-conscious.

We can decorate our home with handcrafted ornaments made from materials we already have. We can give ornaments to others.

But maybe we can skip the wrapping paper, which is just one more single-use item that will end up in the trash.

We can create our own non-religious traditions and a sense of the group that includes everyone.

We can concentrate on enjoying the beautiful arctic winter. Then we go back home and appreciate the fact that we have a warm, cozy home full of people we love.

Celebrate with holiday rituals that don’t revolve around gift-giving

Here are some ideas for holiday traditions with children that don’t revolve around gift-giving:

• Listening to holiday music
• Hosting a game night
• Going on a nature walk
• Baking holiday treats
• Lighting candles for all the people you appreciate in your life
• Making up holiday songs
• Reminiscing the year and making plans for the next one
• Attending a concert
• Participating in a holiday charity event
• Decorating the house with homemade ornaments
• Hosting a dinner party
• Taking family pictures
• Going camping

Make gifts from the heart

Gift-giving is a way to show love, but gifts don’t have to be material.

Here are some ideas for non-material gifts your children can gift during the holidays:

• A letter
• A painting
• A story
• Homemade cookies
• A music playlist
• An opportunity to learn something together
• A gift certificate for help such as doing chores
• A plan for a special time together, like going on a hike together
• A list of “All the things I appreciate about you”
• A photo album

Buy second-hand whenever possible

Secondhand is just as good as new. Even more, I like the idea of a place where people can swap items for free.

Some things make our lives easier, while others bring us joy. It’s fine (at least for me) to enjoy some material things.

I like to intentionally own things and model gratitude by appreciating things that others have discarded.

Talk about the consumerism that is in the air

It is important to teach children about consumerism in an age-appropriate way.

Begin by explaining what consumerism is. You can describe consumerism as the practice of purchasing and using a wide range of goods and services.

You can explain that not all consumerism is bad. It is acceptable to buy things that we need or that bring us joy, as long as we are mindful of how much we consume.

Discuss what money is, how the family income is earned and how we can spend it on the things that we need or are important to us.

Talk about the environmental impact we create by using everyday items and how we can reduce it.

What not to do on holidays if you want to teach your kids gratitude

Don’t make a holidays list

A list of things that we don’t have but would like someone to give us? That doesn’t encourage gratitude, does it?

What about a list of things to be grateful for? We could add little notes to a jar throughout the holidays and read them together as a family tradition.

Don’t go shopping without a very specific list

Ok so you do need a holiday list. But a list of people in your life and very specific gifts that you would like to give them. That is, if you still want to gift them things.

Tere are other ways to celebrate the holidays that don’t revolve around gift-giving. If you like gift-giving, you can gift non-material things. If you want to gift material things, they can be second-hand.

But if you still want to buy something new for someone, be mindful. Think of what you want to gift them and then go buy it with your list. And try not no buy anything else.

Holiday shopping as a way to spend time together is not the best idea if you want to teach kids to be grateful for what they have.

Wandering around a mall looking for things you “need” or want to buy for someone else will inevitably result in a slew of impulsive purchases and lots of ideas on what we should buy next.

What other things do you do as a family to encourage gratitude during the holidays?