Looking for creative ways for your children to express their gratitude to others? Showing gratitude is a great way for us to show others God’s love and ours. Your children can verbalize their appreciation or write a note, but sometimes it’s fun to get a little creative when you thank someone.
The next time your children want to show someone their appreciation, try having fun with one of these ideas:
- Does the person live nearby? Try to sneak over and rake leaves, shovel snow or sweep the walk. Put their paper by the door they use the most. Say thank you by taking something off the person’s “to-do” list. When you are finished, leave a note detailing why you appreciate the person.
- Does the person have a sweet tooth? Do they love bread? Have your children help bake goodies to show the person how thankful you are for what they have done.
- Teach your child how to knit or crochet and help him make a nice warm scarf for the person. It is a great first project many children can handle as early as elementary school.
- Does the person have a special hobby or interest? Help your child research something unique within the interest. Have her write a report about what she learned and illustrate it. Have her add an additional thanks for exposing her to something new and interesting.
- Do you have an area where you can plant a few vegetables or herbs? How about flowers or fruit trees? Have your children help plant and care for the garden space. Once the produce or flowers arrive, allow them to pick some and take it to those they would like to thank.
- Allow your child to do odd jobs around the house to earn a little extra money. Let them use the money to purchase a small gift card to the person’s favorite coffee shop or ice cream place. These places will often have gift cards for a couple of dollars.
- Have a lot of children who want to thank a teacher or coach? Dress them in bright clothing and use their bodies to spell out the word “thanks”. Take a photo of the living word and place it in an inexpensive frame.
- Pull out old magazines. Have your children cut out words describing the person they want to thank. Help them use the words to create a collage on card stock. You may even want to place the finished masterpiece in an inexpensive frame.
Do you have another idea for showing appreciation creatively? Have your children done something special to thank someone? Please share your idea in a comment below. Take some time this week and help your children thank someone special in some creative way. It will make treasured memories for the person and your children.