Expressing Thanks: Creative Activities for Children

Nancy Mexicano — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 14:41:30 +0000

Nancy Mexicano Fri, 11/10/2023 - 09:41

Thanksgiving is a special time to come together with family and friends, share a delicious meal, and reflect on the things we are grateful for. It's a holiday that provides a wonderful opportunity to teach children about the importance of gratitude and giving thanks. In this blog, we'll explore some creative and engaging activities to help children express their thanks and embrace the spirit of Thanksgiving.

1. Gratitude Journals:
Encourage children to keep a gratitude journal where they can write or draw things they are thankful for. Each day, have them record something different, helping them focus on the positive aspects of their lives. These journals can be a lasting keepsake, showing how their appreciation evolves over time.

2. Thankful Trees:
Create a Thankful Tree as a beautiful and interactive decoration. Cut out paper leaves, and each day leading up to Thanksgiving, have children write something they're thankful for on a leaf and attach it to the tree. This visual representation of gratitude can serve as a wonderful conversation starter.

3. Handprint Turkeys:
One of the classic Thanksgiving crafts for children is making handprint turkeys. Each finger represents something the child is thankful for. As they craft these colorful birds, they'll also be reminded of their blessings.

4. Acts of Kindness:
Teaching children to be thankful also involves teaching them to give back. Have them engage in small acts of kindness, like making cards for elderly neighbors, helping set the table for Thanksgiving dinner, or sharing their toys. These actions help them understand the joy of giving.

5. Thankful Tablecloth:
For Thanksgiving dinner, spread out a plain tablecloth and provide fabric markers. Encourage children to write down their thanks, draw pictures, or even trace their hands with messages of gratitude. This personalized tablecloth can become a cherished tradition and conversation piece.

6. Gratitude Scavenger Hunt:
Create a scavenger hunt that guides children to find things they're thankful for in and around the house or during a nature walk. This hands-on activity not only gets them moving but also helps them discover the beauty in the world around them.

7. Thankful Storytime:
Choose books that focus on the theme of thankfulness and read them together. Discuss the stories and ask children what they're thankful for, connecting the literature to their own experiences.

8. Thank You Cards:
Provide materials for children to make thank you cards for family members, teachers, or friends. Expressing gratitude through handwritten notes is a valuable skill that can last a lifetime.

9. Thanksgiving Poems and Songs:
Encourage children to create their own Thanksgiving poems or songs. It can be a fun way for them to express their thanks in a creative manner, and they can even perform them for the family during the holiday.

10. Volunteer Together:
Depending on the age of the children, consider involving them in volunteer opportunities that are age appropriate. This hands-on experience will teach them the value of giving back and the importance of gratitude in action.

These activities not only bring the Thanksgiving spirit to life but also help children understand the true meaning of the holiday: giving thanks for what we have and showing appreciation to the people around us. By making gratitude a part of their daily lives, children can carry the lessons of Thanksgiving with them throughout the year.

Spend Quality Time With Your Child

lba-admin — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 19:01:38 +0000

Spend Quality Time With Your Child

lba-admin Wed, 06/19/2019 - 15:01

Do you wish you had more hours in the day? That’s obviously a rhetorical question.

After dropping off the little ones at school, stopping for coffee on the way to work, flying through the day and then scurrying to pick them up after work and then the dreaded evening routine, when it’s time to play, we just want one thing - sleep. Even though it’s hard to fight the urge of tiredness that falls upon us at approximately 6:00pm every single night (why is this?), spending quality time with your child is crucial to their development and overall well-being.

Since you’re a working parent, you and your child spend majority of the day apart, it is important to get quality time together once the day is done. Even though child care programs provide a number of benefits for your child, including educational, social and emotional development, use this guide to help you spend more time at home with your little one:

Open up your schedules. There are a number of responsibilities and activities that make up the daily routines of both children and their parents. But in order to spend quality time with your children, it is important to set aside time in your day. Try to cut back on any extra daily activities, and encourage your child to focus on just one or two extracurricular activities. This will help provide more time to spend together as a family.

Turn meal time into family time. Eating meals at home is a great way to save money and avoid eating greasy junk food and other unhealthy alternatives. Eating together also provides more opportunities to talk to your children and create lasting memories. You can turn meal time into family time by including children in the preparation of your at-home meals. This is a great way to spend more time with your kids after work and preschool, and it can also help build healthy eating habits that your children will benefit from for the rest of their lives!

Make a weekly date. Choose one day of every week to be your family date day. Designating a family date day will ensure that you spend quality time with your children on a weekly basis. Consistence is important for a child's development, so creating this type of routine can provide a number of benefits to both you and your child! Date ideas can include visiting the zoo, going bowling, seeing a movie, and other fun family-friendly activities.

These are just some ways to spend more time with children once work and preschool are done for the day. You can incorporate any other favorite activities into your special family time!