We always teach our children to say ‘thank you’ to show their appreciation for someone who has given them a gift, helped them or done something good for them. If you explore this concept of mindfulness and positive thinking, it is called gratitude.
Gratitude is a positive emotion that our children must be aware of to develop a positive mindset. It teaches them to acknowledge little joys and good things that they take for granted. When they begin to express gratitude consciously, it will uplift their vibrational energy and empowers them to handle distressful situations in life in a better way.
Here are five ways your child can practice gratitude every day.
- Write a Gratitude Journal
Your children can start writing a gratitude journal before their sleep time. They can express their heartfelt thanks to God, the universe or anyone for all the good things that happened to them that day. For example, ‘I am thankful that I received so many birthday gifts’ or ‘I am thankful that my friend helped me complete the school notes’. This will help them to recall the positive incidents of the day instead of going to sleep with negative thinking.
- Say it in Words
Help your child develop the practice of expressing gratitude in words every time they feel thankful. They can do it silently in their mind or speak aloud to someone directly. Every time they do this, it will train their mind to focus on the good things even if in unfavourable situations.
- Give Them Gratitude Prompts
It can be challenging for your children to find things or situations to feel grateful for and make it a conscious habit. Here are some prompts to help them:
- What five things in nature you are grateful for?
- What are three things you are thankful for in your school?
- Who is your best friend and what is so special about him or her?
- What is one kind act someone did for you recently?
- What are two things you like about yourself?
- Write a Gratitude Note
If your children are shy or uncomfortable expressing gratitude in words to someone, they can write a note to them. They can write a letter, send an email or simply write a WhatsApp message.
- Give a Gratitude Gift
Your children can also gift a thank you card, art and craft object or cake/cookies handmade by them. If you give them pocket money, they can also buy a gift from it.
- Gratitude Jar
Your kids will have super fun doing this activity. Take them to the market and buy a colourful mason jar. If you have an empty jar at home, you can help them decorate it. Ask them to fill this jar with gratitude notes. Put a sticky notepad beside this jar. Every time your child is grateful for something, they can write it on the sticky note, fold it and put it in the jar. When the jar is full, read the notes together – they will surely bring a smile to everyone’s face!
Since children learn by observing, it would be a good idea to do these gratitude practices with them.
