How to Foster Gratitude in Children

All parents want their children to get a good education and prepared to be a functional member of society one day. However, other than teaching them the skills necessary for their future jobs, a child should also be shown how to be a good and gentle person, somebody who‚"ll be kind to people and the world they live in. One way to do this is to teach them gratitude and that 'thank you‚" or ‚"please‚" aren't just words, but ones that they should mean from the bottom of their hearts. Here are some ways to achieve that.

Be charitable together

When you do things together, as a family, it creates a stronger bond between you and your children, so use this to instill gratitude in them. Find a good cause to volunteer for and encourage your little ones to join you. You can donate old clothes, books or anything else you don't have a use for any more, and your kids can help you pack those things. If they develop the understanding for the hardships of others, they will be happy to do what they can to make a difference, while developing a feeling of deeper gratitude for what they have.

Get them good education

A good school doesn't only focus on curriculum and passing down knowledge in different subjects. A good school will also pay attention to building children‚"s character, developing their empathy and teaching them to be the best version of themselves. If you‚"re not happy with how your daughters‚" school approaches this matter, find a better one, and if money is an issue, you can apply for scholarships for the economically disadvantaged families

. These scholarships cover the expenses of services, resources and equipment your kis need so that they can go to a school where gratitude is one of the things taught in the classroom.

Express gratitude yourself

Children don't learn from what you tell them as much as they do from what you do and how you behave. In other words, if you keep telling your kids to be grateful, but you don't demonstrate gratitude yourself you won't get far with instilling it on them. Say your thanks as often as possible, but in a voice that actually shows you‚"re grateful, and explain what you‚"re grateful for. Not only will this teach them good manners, but it will show them that there‚"s a deeper meaning of appreciation behind those words.

Hold back on material things

Every single parent adores their children and wants to give them whatever they wish for. However, when it comes to material gifts, you should hold back a bit, since they will soon consider their prerogative to have anything that crosses their mind, without being grateful for any of it. One way they can learn to appreciate what they get is if they participate in acquiring it. So, if they want a new bike, branded clothes or a more modern telephone, tell them they should start saving money and pay for some part of it themselves. By having to save money or doing chores to earn what they want to get, they will learn the value of hard work and money, while being more thankful for what they have and what other people do for them.

Let them help with meal preparation

If you just serve food every day and cook all your kids‚" favorite meals, they will take it all for granted. However, if you don't allow your children to be passive when it comes to their meals, and if you >involve them in the process of preparing those meals

, they‚"ll learn to be more grateful. Take them grocery shopping to see how much everything costs and let them help you chop vegetables or set the table so that they know that food doesn't just appear out of thin air and that there are limited supplies of it.

Talk to your children and answer all their questions, since the best gift you can give them is your time, patience and love. Be grateful that you‚"re together and show them exactly how grateful you are, so that they can develop that same feeling inside themselves.