Fall is just around the corner, and with it comes cooler weather, shorter days, colorful leaves, cozy pleasures, and the ‘designated’ season of thankfulness and gratitude. Of course, teaching our children to be grateful is always in season—and it’s a great idea to be purposeful in modeling thankfulness and helping our families learn to pay attention to our many blessings every single day of the year. It’s not too early—or too late— to get started.

Here are some ideas:

1. Remind our children that a “thank you” is always in order when they receive gifts or compliments. I was taught that if someone can take the time to do something nice for me, then I can take the time to tell them how much I appreciate their kindness. Moreover, we should teach our children how to write ‘real’ thank you notes, as this skill is a lifelong gift for them—and for others.
2. Help our little ones understand that many of our greatest blessings are not ‘things’ at all. Family, friends, our churches, the freedom to worship and read God’s Word, the privilege to live in a free country, or time spent with those we love are things money cannot buy. God has blessed us abundantly, and all we need to do is open our eyes to see it.
3. Encourage our children to ‘give back’ or ‘pay it forward’ whenever they can—because they have been given so much. For older kids, this may mean volunteering at a soup kitchen or animal shelter, helping an elderly neighbor with yard work, or assisting a busy young mom with her little ones. There are always opportunities to help others.
4. Most of all, we need to show our children that being grateful is a choice we make every single day. We must try to model thankfulness, even when we don’t feel like it. There is ALWAYS something to be thankful for in every circumstance. And truly, learning to be grateful, even in the hard times, is a rich life lesson. God is good all the time.

There are almost three months until Thanksgiving, which most people consider to be the ultimate day of gratitude—but why wait until November? Let’s use the coming weeks to help our families really focus on our blessings and the true gifts in life.

Here’s a fun activity:

Let the children decorate a ‘I AM GRATEFUL FOR’ box and keep it in a special place. Have each family member write down a blessing or something he/she is thankful for on a slip of paper each week until Thanksgiving and put it in the box. Then, on that day, sit down together and read each ‘blessing’ together. You might just be surprised and delighted at what your children understand and appreciate!

Here are a few books and resources to help ‘grow gratitude’ in your family:

The Berenstain Bears Count Their Blessings by Stan and Jan Berenstain

It’s Great to Be Grateful by Michaelene Mundy

Being Thankful by Mercer Mayer

Thank You So Much: A Child’s Guide to Creating a Gracious Thank-You Note by Martha Anne Kelley

Blessings,

Amy M. O’Quinn, award-winning author and educator

For more information about Amy and her books, click here.

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