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Free Printable Thanksgiving Gratitude Game For Your Family

Thanksgiving is such a great time of year to reflect and be thankful for everything and everyone we are blessed to have in our lives. We celebrate the holiday with a huge spread of food and fun and hopefully a heart full of gratitude. Today, I’m sharing a pretty fantastic printable thanksgiving gratitude game for you to play with your family. It’s perfect for kids too!

Are you looking for the best ways to teach thankfulness to your children?  With today’s busy schedules and obsession with materialism, it’s easy for thankfulness to fall by the wayside.  That doesn’t mean that kids aren’t thankful, oftentimes, they just don’t even think about it.

It’s about time to change that, don’t you think?  It is time to bring thankfulness back to our everyday lives, and what better time to do just that than at Thanksgiving?

The Best Tips for Teaching Thankfulness to Your Children

Be a good role model

There is no better way to teach your children thankfulness than to display it yourselves.  Your children are watching you. They see the way you interact with people and in most cases, children emulate their parents.  Make sure they are getting the right example set for them.

In setting a good example for them, make sure that you are telling them thank you when they do something nice for you.  This will help them to feel appreciated. Feeling appreciated is one of the best ways to learn thankfulness, because they then understand the feelings that come with being thankful and appreciative.

Begin teaching them when they are young

When they are small and are just starting to talk, teach them the importance of saying please and thank you.  While some may say that they don’t actually know that they are being thankful at this age, it is a good habit to get them into.  Saying thank you is important in communication, so even if the children are going through the motions to start with, they are still starting.  

Talk to each other about what you are thankful for

Plan some family time at the end of every week to talk about the good things that happened, the things that could be improved upon and make sure to specify the things that each of you are thankful for. 

You can have a conversation, you can write it in a journal, you can put it on little pieces of paper and place it in a jar to look back on later, there is no right or wrong way to do this. The key is that each of you actually put thought into the things you are grateful for.

Let them fail

It’s very common for parents to not let their kids fail and while there is a noble reason for this, it is actually not good to do.  Failure sucks, yes, but it’s also really important to experience it because of all it teaches us. A child that always wins will never know why they should be thankful.  Losing is an incredibly good learning tool.

Volunteer with them

Take your children to volunteer at a shelter or a soup kitchen.  Helping others is a great way to open their eyes to how lucky they are in life.  It is important for children and adults alike in order to be aware of the plight of others and serves as a good reminder that struggles that people face all the time. Volunteering is great not only for helping children to learn thankfulness, but it will also help them learn compassion.

Thankfulness is a powerful emotion that is important in many aspects of life.  Learning thankfulness has the power to massively change the lives of your children and your family.

Thanksgiving Gratitude Game For The Family

The Benefits of Playing a Gratitude Game at Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a time of reflection, togetherness, and gratitude. Over a table laden with delectable dishes and surrounded by loved ones, it’s the perfect setting to pause and express our thanks for the blessings we’ve received. Introducing a gratitude game into this setting not only uplifts the festive mood but carries with it a multitude of benefits.

  1. Fosters Connection:
    Playing a gratitude game offers an opportunity for each participant, from the youngest to the oldest, to share personal stories and experiences. This sharing fosters a deeper connection and understanding among family members and friends.
  2. Shifts the Focus:
    In the modern world, it’s easy to focus on what we lack. A gratitude game redirects our attention, making us realize the abundance of blessings, both big and small, in our lives.
  3. Promotes Positive Mental Health:
    Expressing gratitude has been linked to improved mental well-being. It reduces stress, combats feelings of anxiety, and fosters an overall sense of happiness. Sharing these feelings in a group setting amplifies these benefits.
  4. Cultivates Mindfulness:
    Such games encourage individuals to live in the present moment. Recollecting and acknowledging blessings promotes mindfulness, making participants more aware and appreciative of the current moment.
  5. Encourages Open Communication:
    For families that find deep or emotional conversations challenging, gratitude games can be an ice breaker. They offer a structured yet informal setting for individuals to communicate their feelings openly.
  6. Creates Memorable Moments:
    Over the years, these shared moments of gratitude can become cherished memories. They’re the stories that get passed down, solidifying the importance of family traditions and the essence of Thanksgiving.
  7. Inculcates Positive Values in Younger Generations:
    For children and teenagers, participating in a gratitude game becomes a lesson in appreciating life’s blessings. It teaches them the importance of gratitude in daily life, a value they carry forward as they grow.
  8. Strengthens Bonds:
    Sharing personal stories and moments of gratitude allows for vulnerability, fostering trust and deepening the bonds between family and friends.
  9. Enhances the Festive Experience:
    Beyond the turkey and the pie, what people remember most about holidays are the feelings and experiences. The joy, laughter, and moments of reflection during a gratitude game enrich the Thanksgiving experience, making it even more memorable.
  10. Sets a Positive Tone:
    Starting the meal with positive affirmations and shared gratitude sets a heartwarming tone for the rest of the evening. It encourages more positive interactions and reduces potential conflicts or disagreements.

Today I have a super fun download for you! This Thanksgiving Gratitude Game is super simple! You start with a bag of M&Ms! Depending on the color you pick, you can write down…

  • an experience
  • a person
  • a skill
  • a memory
  • an object
  • a place

that you are grateful for! This is a fantastic game to play with everyone in the family. Plus you might learn something from your family and friends too!

Click here to download your free gratitude game for the family and have a very happy Thanksgiving!

What are some other fun thanksgiving printable to check out?

Rachel

Sunday 24th of November 2019

There is no link to download, other than the ones wanting to install a bookmark. Is there a direct link we can download from?

Nellie

Sunday 24th of November 2019

I am so sorry, I updated this postand must haveforgotten to put the new link--here it is! https://brooklynactivemama.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/The-Gratitude-Gam_Part1_sold.pdf

Janine Huldie

Monday 21st of October 2019

Totally going to have to try this with my kids now and seriously looks like such a fun game to help reinforce what to indeed be grateful for :)