To teach kids about giving, show, don't tell
The season of giving is upon us, and the time is right to teach your children what charity means. According to Barbara Roth, child care specialty consultant for YMCA of the USA, "Charity doesn't start with helping strangers. As cliche as it sounds, it really begins at home.
"Before children can do good in their communities, they need to understand what charity is," Roth says. She explains that the easiest way for young children to understand charity is to see it in action among family members.
For example, if a grandparent isn't feeling well, suggest that your child make a get-well card. If one child has a difficult day at school, invite the others to help you bake a treat for him or her. This helps a child become more sensitive to the needs and feelings of other people.
Roth also recommends a holiday "caring" project that teaches the importance of nurturing living things and helps children recognize people who care for them. Have your child plant seeds in two pots, then instruct him or her to water, feed, prune, and talk to one plant, while intentionally neglecting the other one. As the plants develop, discuss the people who care for your child and how much better plants and people do when they are well cared for. When the thriving plant is full grown, ask the child to decorate the pot and give it to a special caregiver.
- When children get a little older, they can participate in organized activities at home or with an outside group. For example:
- Invite them to collect unused clothing or personal care items for a homeless shelter.
- Each season, ask them to select two of their own toys, books, or pieces of clothing to donate to a child care center or medical clinic in a low-income neighborhood.
- Work together on a quilt project for a homeless shelter or church in your neighborhood. Older children can sew patches, and young children can sort fabric and materials.
To learn about volunteer opportunities in your neighborhood, contact your YMCA's volunteer services director. Contact your Y's child care director for project ideas you can do at home with your child.
Did You Know?
- In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast which is now known as the first Thanksgiving.
- That original feast occurred between September 21 and November 11 and was three days long.
- In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt set the date for Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday of November. (It was approved by Congress in 1941.)
Source: http://www.historychannel.com