In this post I’ll share five of my absolute favorite mindful gratitude activities you can do with kids of any age. These are perfect for thanksgiving … or any day you want to connect with your kids and feel better. All activities are suitable for a group of kids and one-on-one.

If you’ve read my blog you know that gratitude is my favorite, and here’s why:

With kids in particular, Gratitude practice is linked to enhanced happiness, optimism, improved social support, and overall satisfaction with school, family, community, friends and self.

Gratitude practice comes with so many science-backed benefits that I simply can’t not do gratitude practice with my son. Benefits such as: increased happiness, protection from stress and negativity, improved social intelligence, improved relationships, and even improved health.

Who doesn’t want more joy, happiness and calm for their kids? And guess what …

The best part is that gratitude practice is both fun and easy to do! It’s pretty cool that you can get so much with so little effort.

Five awesome mindful gratitude activities for kids

Below you’ll find five wonderful activities for kids, including short descriptions. I’m sure you’ll discover at least one you’d like to try :) Click on each link to view the complete activity.

With these mindful gratitude activities you can help kids  …

be grateful for what they already have,
to appreciate the small things in life,
become happier and better at feeling good,
and show them that happiness comes from within.

And you can discover new, joyful ways to connect with your kids!

#1 Gratitude Gift

This mindfulness activity is heartwarming and I can’t recommend it enough. It combines kindness and gratitude in a fun way that anyone can do. The Gratitude Gift mindfulness activity is great for all ages. It’s a compassionate spin on the traditional thank you note; a thank you note generally thanks someone for something, but this activity is a great way for a child to show appreciation to someone for simply existing.

Learn more about the the Gratitude Gift activity and our adventure in Spain.

#2 Gratitude Flowers

This playful mindfulness activity is similar to the Gratitude Tree, but instead of trees, you’ll create simple fun flowers. If you’re a teacher then the kids will love it. You can design a beautiful garden full of happy gratitude flowers and help the kids nurture gratitude and joy as you build it together.

Learn more about the Gratitude Flowers activity here.

#3 Gratitude Jar

The Gratitude Jar activity is a classic and great for all ages. I gave my son a Gratitude Jar for his fourth birthday. It didn’t look as cool as the other gifts. After all, it’s just a cookie jar filled with paper notes. But, time has proven that the Gratitude Jar prevails and toys get forgotten. We visit the jar weekly after almost two years. And it makes us happy every time!

Learn more about the Gratitude Jar activity here.

#4 Gratitude Tree

Here’s the perfect mindfulness activity for Thanksgiving or a rainy day. It’s called the gratitude tree. It’s similar to Gratitude Flowers and it’s a fun crafts activity to do with your kids.

Learn more about the Gratitude Tree activity here.

#5 Gratitude Photo Challenge

mindfulness for teens gratitude photo challenge

The Gratitude Photo Challenge is great for older kids and fun for grown-ups, too :-) The Gratitude Photo Challenge activity gives a teen-friendly spin to gratitude practice. This fun activity will teach your teen to pay attention to the things he or she is grateful for – for a full week! All you need is a camera or a phone with a camera.

Learn more about the Gratitude Photo Challenge activity here.

I really hope you’ll enjoy these activities with the kids!!

Oh, and if you want more then you’ll find 150 playful mindfulness activities in my 5-star rated best selling book:

“The Most Important Mindfulness Book You’ll Ever Buy” – Helen Hudson

Ultimate Mindfulness Activity Book – 150 Playful Mindfulness Activities for Kids and Teens (and Grown-Ups too!)

I wish you many many mindful moments and a happy thanksgiving :-)

Chris Bergstrom

Chief Mindfulness Ninja @ Blissful Kids

 #1 Best-Selling Author of:
 
★★★★★ Awesome “Bought this book for my 6 year old, but even my 3 and 15 yo love the activities. We usually incorporate activities on a daily basis and it’s been working so far.”
&
★★★★★ Cute and calming “With the craze being all about baby sharks, it’s a great idea to take it and use it to help our kids calm down themselves. I’m a therapist and look forward to using this with my kid clients.”

See also:

Liking the Music

Stay Cool Game

5 Mindful Games

If you are new to mindfulness with children OR you want to make practice easy we recommend our online mindfulness courses.


Chris Bergstrom is a bestselling mindfulness author, the founder of BlissfulKids.com, a blog dedicated to children’s mindfulness, and a dad who is thrilled to practice mindfulness with his son. He is a certified mindfulness facilitator and trained to teach mindfulness to students in K-12. He’s also known as “the dad who tried 200+ mindfulness activities” and has taught meditation for more than 15 years.