The Thanksgiving season is upon us, and now more than ever is the perfect time to start talking with your kids about the importance of gratitude. As we start to prepare for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, I’m using this time with my students to teach them about the importance of gratitude and teach gratitude in the classroom!

Encourage them to practice and share gratitude

One of my favorite exercises to do with them is to have them either write or share three things that they’re grateful for. This encourages them to start thinking about all the good things going on in their life right now and share those things with the class! You can have them write a paper on the topic, go around the room and share them in small groups, or even create a whole activity out of it! There are so many creative ways you can encourage your kids to practice gratitude and even do a little schoolwork in the process.

Find different ways they can show gratitude around their school

Just because we are social distancing and forced to be further apart from one another doesn’t mean we can’t find ways to show gratitude toward others. My class and I like to leave sticky notes for the other teachers on their door with a little note. Look for small ways that your kids can get involved and show gratitude toward other students or other teachers. Something as small as a handwritten card can mean the world to an overworked teacher!

Practice random acts of kindness

These don’t even need to cost anything! Random acts of kindness could be something as small as opening the door for someone or delivering baked goods to a neighbor. If your kids aren’t in the classroom this year, you can still encourage them to practice random acts of kindness around their homes or neighborhoods. You can even put together a little challenge for your students to do a different random act of kindness for a week, month, or even a year if you’re feeling ambitious.

Gratitude doesn’t have to be in person

Remember that gratitude isn’t only for people who can be together in person. If you’re teaching virtually this year, or you want to avoid mixing up classrooms because of social distancing guidelines, you can still leave notes virtually via email or in Google Classroom. You can have everyone share what they’re grateful for over Zoom and have them practice random acts of kindness at home instead of around the school. A lesson gratitude can be taught anywhere at any time, so if you’re getting to this after Thanksgiving, you can still share this important lesson with your students!

Gratitude is such an important topic to cover in the classroom! Whether you’re teaching virtually or in person this year, you can still find creative ways to show gratitude toward those around you! These little activities and tips can help make this time of year special for your students and your community.