Teaching children to be thankful can be a difficult task. It can be a hard concept to teach as well as a difficult concept for them to grasp. Often times, kids relate most to certain items that they love a lot, like their toys or their blankets. You can start off teaching them that they might be thankful for those items, then move onto the bigger, more meaningful things like family, friends, food, their teacher, etc. Once they understand the concept, you can have some fun making crafts that will help them to realize and remember all the things that mean so much to them. Not only are all of these 7 crafts easy to make, but they encourage your child to think about what they are truly thankful for. As the craft sits out displayed in your home, they will be reminded every day of what matters most to them and how lucky they are to have those things.
Source: makeoversandmotherhood.com
1. Thankfulness Tree
This thankful tree is a great craft that not only looks cute when on display, but gets your kids thinking, too. Every day, have your child write down what they are thankful for on a leaf, then glue it on the tree. At the end of the month you’ll have a tree full of leaves all with words that are meaningful to everyone in your family.
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2. Thankful ABC Book
If you want to use the opportunity of teaching your child thankfulness while doing an educational activity, use a notebook to create a Thankful ABC book. Every day have your child write one letter of the alphabet on a piece of paper, then on the next page, have them draw a picture of something they are thankful for that begins with that letter. This allows them to not only know what means most to them in their lives, but helps them to learn their letters as well.
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3. “Thankful For” Frame
I’m sure you’ve seen the “I Love You Because” dry erase frames floating around Pinterest over the last few years. The concept is to take a frame, put a cute paper in the glass, then write with a dry erase marker why you love your significant other. Since it’s written in dry erase marker you can change out the reason why you love them every day. Well, what a great idea to make one for Thanksgiving as well! Instead of “I love you because,” the frame will say “Thankful for.” Everyday your family can write a new thing that they are thankful for.
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4. Thankful Turkey
Since turkeys are pretty much the iconic symbol of Thanksgiving, why not make one with your kids? Instead of making the whole turkey at once, wait to add the tail feathers. Every week your child can write something they are thankful for on one of the tail feathers, then attach it to the turkey. By the time Thanksgiving rolls around, they’ll have a full feathered turkey that they’ll be so proud of not only because they made it, but because it represents what they love.
(If you’re interested in finding more kid activities, kid crafts, fun educational lessons and more, check out La-La’s Home Daycare).
5. Thankful Postcards
A great way to teach kids to be thankful is to write thank you cards to people. Have your child write thank you notes to all those people in their life that they are thankful for like grandmas, grandpas, cousins, friends, teachers, and so on. Not only will your kids love being able to make and send the cards in the mail, but the recipient will love hearing how much your child loves and appreciates them.
(Check out Parents for endless amounts of parenting advice, activities and crafts for kids, and so much more).
6. Jar Of Thanks
A great way to teach thankfulness as well as make a cute Thanksgiving day decoration is to make a jar of thanks. Every day up until Thanksgiving everyone will write down on a piece of paper something they are thankful for. On the morning of Thanksgiving your family can take those papers, attach them to a string and make a banner or garland that goes over the dinner table. It will remind your whole family of what you’re thankful for as you eat your Thanksgiving day feast.
(Check out Parents for endless amounts of parenting advice, activities and crafts for kids, and so much more).
7. Thankful Wreath
A fun craft to make with children is a holiday wreath, especially if it’s for their own bedroom door. Have your child make a thankful wreath where they write things that they are thankful for on some foam leaves, then glue them down onto a wreath form. Once the wreath is covered in all the thankful leaves they can hang it on their bedroom door so that every day they will see and be reminded of everything that they love most in their life
(For inspiration from holiday decor, to interior design, to crafts, to DIY projects, and so much more, check out Family Holiday.net).