Gratitude Jar
Ages: 1-5 years & Beyond
Get Ready: Buy any size glass vase and a pack of colorful tissue paper. Get some school glue and q-tips or paint brush. Cut tissue paper into inch squares. Pour glue out on a paper plate or bowl. Purchase the battery operated tea lights. Provide a small notepad and a writing utensil to keep near the jar when it is finished.
Get Started: Give your child a painting tool – work together to put glue on the outside of the vase and cover the glue with assorted colored squares of tissue paper. The squares may over-lap. Allow your child to lead you in this creation. When the vase is covered to your child’s satisfaction, you may want to brush on a top coat of glue to make it shiny and more secure.
Sit Back & Watch Your Child Go: As you work together, notice how your child holds& controls the painting tool. Notice how she thinks about the colors she will use. Talk together as you work.
Want to amp up the learning? Ask some higher order thinking questions that start with “who” “what” “when” “how”. Share some of your ideas with your child. These types of conversations help us get to know each other better as we explain our thinking, express our opinions & experiences. “Who is someone you could say thank you to?” “How do you feel when someone does something really nice for you?” “How can we be thankful when bad things happen?” “What is something you are thankful for?” “When is it a good time to tell someone thank you?”
Get Creative: Make a gratitude jar for your neighbor or an extended family member. The first note of thanksgiving in the jar will be why you are thankful for them!
As your child grows: teaching an attitude of gratitude takes time and repetition. You are your child’s model. Talk about what you’re thankful for each day. Encourage generosity. Have your child help around the house. Teach your child to write thank you notes – write them and have them sign their name. Encourage them to draw a picture if they aren’t writing yet. When they are able to write, just a sentence of thanks will do.
Your child will love: the creativity of this project and will feel proud of the beauty of her accomplishment. She will feel excited to see how the vase glows when you turn on the tea light inside the vase.
You will love: watching you and your family grow in an attitude of gratitude as you practice together naming and writing down what you are thankful for all year long and dropping it in your gratitude jar! Read over them often, especially when someone is having a hard time thinking of something to be grateful for.
