Practicing gratitude is like strengthening a muscle…. Or perhaps like a yoga practice! The more you practice gratitude, the stronger your gratitude muscle gets, AND the more you become aware of it’s benefits. The more we practice identifying things we are grateful for the easier it gets to notice the good all around us.
A regular practice of gratitude activities with our kids can help them to strengthen their gratitude muscles and it makes it easier for them to see all of the beauty and kindness in the world (especially in these unforeseen times).
Life will inevitably bring challenges into the lives of our little ones, no matter how well we prepare them. When children cultivate a practice of finding things to be thankful for they are able to see the gifts and silver linings even on the hardest days.
There are so many benefits that accompany practicing gratitude with children. Practicing gratitude activities with kids can help them to really notice the good in situations, even in times of hardship, and help them to bring more joy in their lives into adulthood.
So today I am going to share a super fun game I like play in my kids yoga classes!! PS…. It involves chocolate!!
What you will need:
M&Ms
How to play:
Without telling your kids what the purpose of the game is, pass around the bag of M&Ms and tell your kids to take as many as they want as long as there is enough to go around for everyone…. Tell them not to eat the M&Ms right away.
Once everyone has their M&Ms you announce the rules.
To play the game name what you are grateful for (corresponding to the appropriate color) listed. If you get multiple M&Ms of the same color, then name more than one thing in that category you are grateful for!!!
BROWN: Name a person you are grateful for.
RED: Name Something you are grateful for.
YELLOW: Name a memory you are grateful for.
GREEN: Name a place you are grateful for.
ORANGE: Name a skill you are grateful for.
BLUE: Name anything you are grateful for.
I am sure you can guess this game is a big hit in our kids yoga classes! I hope it is a big hit for you at home too!
See you next time!
Love & Light — Cassy