10 ways to celebrate World Kindness Day

Posted by Patience on November 10, 2008 at 4:22 PM in PBS Values, Patience

The lovely Lauren

World Kindness day is coming! Did you know it's on Thursday, November 13th? You can read more about it here. Practicing kindness is a great way to bring families together. Here are some ideas for your celebration.

1. Leave something special on the neighbor's doorstep. Flowers, a baked good, an invitation to share a meal.
2. Make your kid's bed. Do the one chore your kid hates the most for him/her.
3. Make a contribution toward this very important fund. Change and one dollar bills from piggy banks count too.
4. Write a thank you or draw a picture for someone you love. Tell them what you love about them and thank them for being themselves.
5. Pay the toll for the car behind you, let your child give the money from the back window.
6. Pick up some trash. Spend an hour cleaning up a park, school, or even your neighborhood.
7. Make Hope Notes together as a family and spread them all over your city or town.
8. Try to smile at 10 people today.
9. Visit a grandparent or elderly friend.
10. Start an Acts of Kindness list.

Add to our list Supersisters or tell us how your World Kindness Day celebration went in the comments.

Finding Family Kindness

Posted by Patience on August 18, 2008 at 7:00 AM in PBS Values, Patience

A few years ago the teachers in my son's preschool class noticed the kids seemed to be struggling with lots of conflict. It was towards the end of the school year when classmates are more comfortable with each other and start acting almost like siblings.

Instead of whipping the kids into shape with a reminder of rules, the teachers found a more creative approach to changing the feel in the classroom. They invited a puppet named Verde to come and talk to the kids about being kind to one another. The kids and Verde came up with the idea of documenting acts of kindness. Everyday, the children were on the hunt to find the acts happening around them, not their own. Before long there were lists all over the room and kindness had worked its magic.

I was so touched by the idea and wondered if it could work for our family. We gathered the markers, decorated our own sheet and proudly displayed the colorful paper on the refrigerator.

"Mom! Mom! Jack helped Lucy put her jacket on, put it on the list mom!" Josiah yelled from the other room.

"Josiah, mom made pancakes, we LOVE pancakes mom. I think it's an act of kindness..." Jack said trying to find something in the hunt for goodness.

I sat at the table one night watching my husband Jorge and thought to myself, "Awww, He DOES love me, look at him doing the dishes."
I quietly walked to the door and added his act to the list. I started noticing the things he was doing instead of focusing on our long standing "discussion" on division of labor.

A week later small things held new value and peace had claimed a bigger stake in our everyday family life. The list eventually filled up and faded with water marks and juice stains but I didn't have the heart to take it down until we moved. Every once in awhile when everyone gets kind of grouchy and sick of each other, I revive the idea even if it is only identified in words. Kindness can always find it's way back if we just look for it.

What are your secrets for turning things around when your family is in a funk?
Try this kindness activity and tell us if it was a winner or a bomb at your house, or any variations that you think would work better.