Thanksgiving Week Is Upon Us…

Let’s talk about students in general. I’ve taught everything from sixth grade to adult education, and I’ve taught in areas with abject poverty and extreme wealth. I’ve really done it all through the years, and I’ve learned a lot by observation. All students share some important commonalities. They have a lot at their disposal, even the poorest of them all, and they need to develop an attitude of gratitude. 

“Gratitude shifts our mindset. An attitude of gratitude means making the conscious habit of expressing appreciation on a regular basis for big and small things alike.”

When I say “they have a lot at their disposal…” I refer to our public education system. Beat up and abused through the years, our current school system absolutely needs an overhaul, but if you look at it through it’s smallest pieces, it has a lot to offer students in need. Not only do we now feed all students breakfast and lunch, but some schools send food home over the weekend, and we even have schools open for free dinner every night! With that most basic need met, our students are able to come to us more prepared to learn and grow.

The next element feeds their soul:

The adults on campus. Students come in contact with a wide variety of adults who are there to help them. Even if they don’t “connect” with one teacher or another, there are plenty of other people for them to build a relationship with to help them with problems or adult situations they can’t handle alone. 

So, on this wondrous Thanksgiving Week, let’s talk about small, simple ways our students can express their gratitude for the many things they do have. Research shows that the act of expressing gratitude for things is extremely beneficial for our students, because “it increases self-esteem, enhances positive emotions and makes us more optimistic.” This is why it is important to help our students develop not only an attitude of gratitude, but to give them opportunities to share those positive feelings with people in their lives.

Let’s spread the love this week with these ideas! 

Who Do We Target For This Activity?

Parent/Guardian

As parents, we take a lot of crap, don’t we? We get very little credit for the numerous things we do for our children—large and small! Every day of our lives is a constant struggle between caring for our family and caring for ourselves, with our own well-being always falling a distant second. Lecturing my students about the sacrifices of their parents won’t really work, but I certainly can give them some ideas of things that all parents are doing.

We talk about the past 24 hours—literally—and I have the students make a quick list of everything their parents did with or for them. They won’t immediately think of putting the roof over their head, or even buying all those school supplies, but having them brainstorm with peers can result in an interesting and abundant list of things children should be grateful for. 

Teachers

Another often beat-up group, teachers take a ton of negative energy from students on a daily basis. To highlight for students the incredible number of gifts they have received from teachers, I have them brainstorm a list with a partner of everything they know how to do. As soon as they pick up the pencil, I stop them to remind them it was their Kindergarten teacher (Hello Sweet Husband!) who taught them that simple skill to start with. That usually gets them thinking of multiple things—large and small—they have gotten from their teachers.

Friends

This is the easiest list for kids—and often the most emotional one. They talk about friends “being there” for them, listening to them and helping them with problems. I encourage them to think quite literally about their friends and what they do together. How are those activities things to be grateful for, and, most importantly, I ask them who facilitated the activity. This always brings them back to their parents or teachers as the center of any relationship they have formed. 

Different Ways To Show Gratitude

So we’ve developed lists of people we should be grateful to have in our lives. The simple act of writing all of these reasons and activities down has tremendous power with the students, as they literally quantify everything they have at their disposal at any time. They are often stunned by how long the lists have become once they zero in on specific things, conversations and activities they have shared. 

These lists will help students begin to develop an attitude of gratitude. Students should be encouraged to keep a gratitude journal, or at least to consider what they are grateful for on a regular basis. Perhaps at night before they go to sleep they should be encouraged to consider everything they have to be grateful for. Focusing on these positive images and people will not only help them feel more hopeful, but it will minimize the energy they give to the problematic, negative things they are going through in their difficult lives.

So, with Thanksgiving creeping up, how can we SHARE all of this positivity and gratitude with the people they love? Here is our plan for today’s FBLA meeting: 

Writing a note

Sweet Stevie got married this month. Mom wrote out the card herself, and if you follow my blog, you know what a huge thing that is. Mom hasn’t written anything in several years, and usually lacks the mental strength to sign cards anymore. But she didn’t just sign this card, she wrote Sweet Stevie and His Bride a note. It is probably the last thing she will ever write, and it made me cry when she did it, and Sweet Stevie cried when he read it.

That is the power of putting pen to paper and writing an actual note. Sure, send an email if that’s all you can do, but we need to instill in our youth the incredible value of writing out a note or card to express gratitude and appreciation.  

Creating art

I’ve got absolutely no creativity, but man oh man am I an idea person! Depending on your level of skill and ability, creating a simple piece of art can be a very powerful way for our students to express gratitude and appreciation. One year, we bought a bunch of small craft kits on clearance at a local hobby store, and the kids made those (they were little houses) for centerpieces. Another year we had them create a paper wreath for the front door. Another suggestion specific to this holiday might be to make simple place cards for seating at Thanksgiving dinner. 

How about a small gift?

I could easily make a case for an attitude of gratitude to be a community service project for our CTSO. By helping other students recognize things they should be grateful for, we are helping them find a positive attitude, and will hopefully extend to other people and situations. So, consider doing a not-for-profit activity with your organization to promote gratitude this fall. Here are a few of the things we have set-up, and sold at cost, to give our students the opportunity to show gratitude to other people:

The Options:

Candy – A great way for students to express gratitude within the school is by sending candy to their friends or teachers with a small note. While these “grams” are often done as a fundraiser, it is possible to do this strictly at cost to encourage more students to do this. Delivering them the day before Thanksgiving break is a wonderful surprise treat for both the giver and the receiver. 

Pictures – There is absolutely nothing these kids like more than taking selfies and posting them all over the internet. Consider giving them a venue for these pictures that centers around gratitude! You can easily set up a photo wall for them to use, and create a number of signs for them to hold up in their pictures. Signs like “Thanks, Mom” or “I appreciate you” will make the photos even more special, and students can quickly and easily send them to whomever they are grateful for. We have also had small dry erase boards for students to write their own message at the photo booth!

Wooden roses – Loyal readers know I rarely promote a company (Except for Disney!!!), but for this activity, you need https://woodroseusa.com/ . They sell foot-long, long-stem wooden roses in about 50 colors that we use for a fundraiser for Valentine’s Day. These suckers look completely real, and they even send some greenery and sleeves to bundle them. Here’s why I promote them: The roses are about $0.14 each. That’s right—fourteen cents each. Sell them for a quarter each with a little note attached, and kids can show appreciation to multiple people for a dollar! We use it for fundraising for Valentine’s and Mother’s day, but for Thanksgiving, it’s all about sharing the joy and gratitude.   

What Are We Teaching?

I don’t pretend my students don’t have negative things, people and events in their lives. Quite the opposite. I just don’t give them any additional power. I’m a firm believer in positivity, and that being positive is it’s own reward, as it trains my brain to lead with strength, power and joy at every turn. 

So, please, be there for your students when difficult things happen, and people try to steal their joy. But, whenever you can, lead with positivity and we can train this generation to be much happier than ours.  

THANK YOU FOR READING THIS FAR

Wow, thank you for reading about gratitude for students!

Hey, since you’re here! You may as well check out how to keep your students safe, here, and learn how to celebrate with students, here! Check out our other topics here! Either way, I appreciate you!

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