Back to School: Acts of Kindness

“When we feel love and kindness toward others, it not only makes others feel loved and cared for, but it helps us also to develop inner happiness and peace.” ~ Dalai Lama XIV

The most memorable students in my primary school classes were kind. They spoke kind words and behaved kindly toward others. Kindness is a quality that teachers savor. Imagine a class where children get along, respect each other, and happily follow class routines. Then the teacher can dedicate more time to developing their skills, instilling a love of learning, and teaching new concepts.

Now, as a mother, I have been thinking of ways to teach kindness to my daughter so that she can go to school in September as a respectful and kind class member. I’m not worried about her academics, but I do hope that she can begin to see herself as a part of a class community, develop positive social skills, and gain a healthy sense of self.

Forty ways that you can support your child to be kind to themselves, others, animals, and the environment:

Acts of Kindness to Yourself

1. Eat healthy, whole foods with your child.
2. Drink lots of water. Carry re-fillable water bottles everywhere you go.
3. Make a practice of sitting quietly once a day and taking a few deep breaths. Make sleep a priority.
4. Read books on self-esteem, love, and happiness.
5. Make a poster with reminders of ways to be kind to yourself.
6. Model an active lifestyle by exercising with your child.
7. Balance your days with active experiences and downtime.
8. Give your child plenty of time to explore and discover his or her own interests.
9. Teach your child to manage destructive feelings by stopping, taking a deep breath, and counting to five.
10. Help your child to identify his or her feelings and help to build self-confidence.

Links above thanks to Washington Post.

Acts of Kindness to Others

1. Model daily kind and respectful behavior by showing up on time for commitments, helping a neighbor with yard work, or opening the door for others.
2. Encourage kind behavior at school by talking to your children about being kind to a new child in class or sharing their things with another child.
3. Make a gift and give to a community worker who helps your family, like the mail carrier, nurse, shop owner, or fire fighter.
4. Do a service project with your child, like serving food at your local community organization, organizing food cans at a food drive, or collecting toys for kids at Christmas.
5. Make a video showing different ways that we can be kind to each other.
6. Give your children space to discover the joy of being kind. Let them experience the positive response from a stranger when they do something kind.
7. Take time to clean up the space around you. Put away the books in the library, take a few shopping carts back to the grocery store, or pick up garbage at the park.
8. Make a Kindness Jar by placing a kindness jewel into the jar every time that someone says a kind word.
9. Find a pen pal in a different country.
10. Create Kindness Coupons they can share with their friends.
11. Read children’s books that teach acceptance and compassion. Talk about ways that the moral of the stories can apply to their lives.
12. Talk about and encourage words and phrases that are kind to say to others.
13. Make a Hug Jar and have your children give you a heart from the jar to signal that they need a hug.
14. Write uplifting messaging on rocks and leave them outside for others to see.
15. Gather up toys and books to give to another child to enjoy.
16. Pick a random act of kindness to do with your family every month.
17. Do as many giving projects as you can for $20, like donating clothing, baking cookies, or writing thank you cards.
18. Send thank you notes every week.
19. Praise out-of-the-ordinary kind behavior.
20. Have dinner together as a family and express gratitude and kindness to each other.

Links above thanks to Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails, Rubber Boots and Elf Shoes, Carrots are Orange, JDaniel4’s Mom, Real Life at Home, Playtivities, Homegrown Friends, Imagination Soup, Me Plus 3 Today, B Photo Art, All Done Monkey, and Kids Activities Blog.

Acts of Kindness to Animals and the Environment

1. Read books that celebrate the earth.
2. Shop at farmer’s markets and make a conscious decision to eat locally.
3. Reduce your use of plastic.
4. Join your classroom teacher in creating service projects, like setting up a recycling system, planting a garden, or sponsoring an animal at the zoo.
5. Choose to eat a vegetarian diet.
6. Grow a garden or plant a tree.
7. Let your children see your enthusiasm for being and working in the outdoors.
8. Organize a local park or beach garbage pickup.
9. Save water in your home and garden.
10. Sponsor an organization that rescues or cares for your child’s favorite animal.

Links above thanks to Allernative Learning, Mud Hut Mama, Moments a Day, Mommy Loves Trees, and Playdough to Plato.

What is one act of kindness you can do with your child today?

Happiness Yoga Book for Kids

You might enjoy award-winning Anna and her Rainbow-Colored Yoga Mats – a yoga book about friendship, and acceptance, and happiness:

“Anna and her Rainbow-Colored Yoga Mats is for young and old alike! Your kids will love traveling with Anna through a safari desert, the pyramids of the desert, through the waters of the world’s oceans – and more! It’s a beautifully told story with beautiful watercolor-like illustrations. Anna and her rainbow-colored yoga mats teach a story of acceptance, friendship, and being happy with yourself – being yourself – in your own space.”
Lisa N.

Anna and her Rainbow-Colored Yoga Mats

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Other Back to School Resources

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