CULTIVATION OF GRATITUDE: HOW TO TEACH CHILDREN TO FEEL THE VALUE OF EXISTING THINGS

Gratitude is one of the basic features of a happy person. So, how to raise a grateful child in our materialistic world? The usual pleas to say "please" and "thank you" are not enough. Gratitude is the ability to appreciate what you have. If you want to teach this quality, try to apply these practices to your child.

The gifts of the day

When you are with your child, try to remember together the “gifts” brought by the day. These can be moments, impressions and events, for which you feel gratitude. It does not matter whether you will talk about meeting new people or eating a tasty ice-cream. It is important to teach your children to perceive everything that happens with us as a gift.

The day of kindness

Take a calendar and mark one day with a star. This will be the day when your child and you will do something useful for your surroundings and for others. You can buy food for dog nursery, collect things for charity organizations or plant a tree! This will help your children understand that it is important not just to take but also to give. This is a meaningful ingredient of gratitude.

You are so caring!

Part of the skill to be grateful is the ability to take care of others. Even if your kid is performing routine tasks like ordering his toys or putting his plate in the sink after eating, you can say: "How caring you are!” Of course, don´t forget about "thank you". It is very important to praise your children and nurture in them their aspiration to be attentive, responsible and caring.

How cool is that!

This practice is complementary to the previous one, but sometimes it can be better just to change the phrase. For instance, you might say: "How good is it when the whole family is having dinner together, isn´t it?” You might also say: "How wonderful is it that we have time to lie on the couch and spend some time together".

Happiness is not the result of getting and receiving. It is rather the state of appreciation of what we already have. Children, especially small ones, do not see how much efforts does it take you to guarantee their comfort and joyful childhood. But if you regularly practice gratitude together, they will start noticing and appreciating what they have. They will definitely learn how to appreciate their parents' work and all that surrounds them.