No act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted.
~Aesop~
Teaching our children the importance of giving to others is something that is always on my heart. I fully understand that teaching this concept to children isn’t something that can be taught in one lesson or even a week’s worth of lessons. Instead, it is a concept they must experience over and over again. They need to see their parents giving to others. They need to have valuable discussions around the dinner table about why we should give. They also need to be fully immersed in an environment where they can give to others in a hands-on way.
Listed below, there are four important things to consider when teaching your children about giving. I hope they are useful suggestions for you to think about when addressing this concept with your own children.
How Do We Give?
There are many ways to give and it is important for us to address each one with our children because they, like us, will experience various seasons of life and giving to others in one way may be more appropriate than another during different seasons. For instance, your child moves away to college and doesn’t have a lot of money to give but they can donate their time helping to paint a local elementary school. Or when they first start their family and have a toddler running around at home, they might not have as much time to donate but they can donate toys or clothes to a local domestic abuse shelter. How can we teach our children to give at all times no matter what our circumstances may be?
We can give our TIME.
We can give our MONEY.
We can give our RESOURCES.
We can give our KINDNESS.
Why Is It Important To Give?
This might be something you want to sit and think about prior to teaching your children. Children always ask WHY! So being prepared is important. Do we give because we are told to? Do we give because it makes us feel good? Do we give because we have more than we need and want to share with others who don’t have as much? Do we give out of selfish conceit or do we give with a cheerful, loving heart?
Your answers may change depending on the circumstance you are in, however, it is good to know and explain overall reasons why we give. For our family, one of the major reasons we like to give to others is to glorify God and to help meet the needs of others in our community. Why do you give?
Make Giving Fun!
Is giving always fun? No. However, when teaching children, especially young children, it is important to make learning fun. Once you have established a consistent giving routine in your home, then you can work on the not so fun giving parts and explain why giving isn’t about us but instead about the person we are serving.
Involve them in giving opportunities in areas they are interested in.
An example: Your child is interested in animals. Have them volunteer at your local animal shelter or donate supplies to help the animals in the shelter. Some animal shelters even have programs where people can go read to dogs and cats. Combining academics and giving back sounds like a win-win!
Volunteer at fun events.
There are many opportunities throughout the year to be involved in fun events where you can volunteer. See how you can volunteer at your local festivals. Ask to volunteer or participate in a 5k or Fun Run for a local charity. Serve pancakes at a pancake breakfast.
Get creative!
Creating new things, utilizing their talents, or learning new skills will help your child be excited and proud about their giving.
If your child is gifted musically, they could use their gift to help others. For instance, they could sing or play an instrument for people at a local nursing home.
If they are gifted with painting, they could create something and donate their work to a local charity silent auction or they could sell it themselves and donate the proceeds to their favorite cause.
You could have your children learn a new skill and use that new skill to give. During my time in college, I learned how to sew pillowcase dresses for little girls, with ladies from my church, and we donated the dresses to girls in Africa. That was fun to do!
If you and your child like to do crafts, have them make a craft to give to a family member, friend, or neighbor. If you don’t have craft ideas in mind, Pinterest and YouTube are great for helping you come up with ideas and even teaching you how to make fun things!
Here is a How-To Video my girls and I created to give you some ideas on creating some cute Christmas gifts with items from the Dollar Tree.
Involve Them!
I mentioned a few ideas for actually involving your children in giving above but I can not express how crucial it is for your children to be directly involved with how you and your family give. It is important for them to see their family give to others but it is also important for them to participate in the giving. By being actively involved, they will ultimately learn how and why to give and will see with their own eyes the impact their service is making.
Take them with you when volunteer.
Help them pick out items at the store to donate.
Have them clean out their toy box and pick items they want to give to another child.
Have them make or buy a gift for a special someone.
Have them write a letter to someone sharing the reasons they are thankful for that person.
Have them give a compliment to a sibling.
There are so many ways you can actively involve your children in giving to others. I hope the suggestions in this article spark some ideas for you and encourages you to give more with your family.
Book Suggestions
Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Luke 6:38 NIV
Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7 NIV
Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:1-4 ESV
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