Activities for Kids

Children learn best through play, storytelling, singing, metaphors, and hands-on experiences. So why not use these activities to teach kids the most important life skills of compassion, kindness, and communication with others?

The activities below are aimed at helping kids develop a deeper understanding of positive character traits and patterns that will help them grow as individuals as well as get along better with others. Example learning objectives include:

~ How to communicate with respect

~ Being truthful

~ Feeling empathy for others

~ Finding ways to be generous

~ Practicing friendliness

Browse the articles:

10 Practical Ways to Help Kids Make New Friends

Friendliness, and the confidence to make friends, is important for all children to develop so they can get along with others. Sometimes as adults who have had so many experiences meeting new people, we may forget how hard it can be for our kids to put themselves out there and talk to people they do… {read more}

4 Playful Activities to Help Children Develop Assertiveness

Being assertive is acting with confidence, thinking for yourself, and expecting respect. Assertiveness and confidence are two character traits I am commonly asked about by readers. Why is this? The first reason I can think of might be that in today’s society we are becoming more aware of the detrimental affects of bullying – so… {read more}

Teach Kids To Be Optimistic with a Fun Hands-on Activity

Attitude. Isn’t having a “good day” or a “bad day” all dependent on attitude? One day I was listening to a bit of complaining (both other voices and the one inside my head) and it hit me: right now I’m being a person who sees the glass half empty. I’m focusing on what I *rather*… {read more}

5 Activities to Teach Children About Unity

We are all different. I believe teaching our children to appreciate difference – and recognize that everyone is the same on the inside – is very important. When we learn to accept others as they are, and find beauty in diversity, we are going to get along well with others. We will get to know… {read more}

4 Fun Ways to Teach Children about Telling the Truth

A few months ago I was invited to participate in a parenting panel for a weekly radio show, and the presenter asked me about young kids “tricking” and if this is a serious case of not telling the truth. (You can listen to the full program here.) I think things are not always as easy… {read more}

8 Ways to Make Mealtime Moments

A few months ago I posted about my free download Mealtime Moments, and I have been truly humbled by the wonderful response to this resource. The cards have been downloaded thousands of times, and I have received messages from families all over the world who are enjoying their set. Mealtime Moments is a set of… {read more}

100 Kids Activities To Build Character

Looking for kids activities to build character? You have come to the right place! My website is dedicated to activities, ideas and resources for families to build character. In this post I have put together a big list of 100 ideas from my own site and from other awesome blogs around the web. Be sure… {read more}

Helping Kids Overcome Disappointment

Helping kids overcome disappointment is not always easy. Young children have strong emotions that they are just learning how to handle. Actually I do not believe we can expect young children not to react strongly to situations – it’s simply part of growing up and figuring out how life works. However dealing with failure, frustration,… {read more}

Activity to Teach Children about Physical Differences

Some of my most embarrassing moments as a mother have been when my children have pointed out physical differences in others. Whether it is noticing a limb missing or an injury from burns, young children are curious and do not realize the affect their words or questions may have on others. Each time a situation… {read more}

5 Printables To Teach Values

There are so many awesome and free printables created by Kid Bloggers around the web. Many are focused on academics or fun, but can also be adapted to enhance character education. In this post I am featuring five printable activities created by other bloggers which our family has enjoyed… with our own character building twist.

5 Activities to Teach Preschoolers About Hunger

September is Hunger Action Month and this year I am proud to be part of a team of mom bloggers who are raising awareness about this important issue. To see what the other moms have been up to, check out the Moms Fighting Hunger Facebook page and follow along to get more ideas of what… {read more}

Free Ebook: Games for Preschoolers

I am so excited that my first ebook 30 Cooperative Games for Preschoolers is now available! And it’s FREE! All of the games in the book require the children to play with each other without competition as a goal. They are simple, easy to follow, and fun! Great for classrooms, playgroups, or with siblings at… {read more}

10 Easy Character Building Activities for Toddlers

Every parent knows how quickly toddlers pick things up. They will copy most anything they see, the good and the not-so-good. Healthy habits can often be passed down by mere imitation. However teaching toddlers the language of values and creating games around character building themes can help establish these character traits into every day work… {read more}

4 Magazine Activities for Building Character

If you are looking for a few simple activities that you can use to discuss positive character traits, here are four magazine activities that are easy and can be a lot of fun. Although I do not purchase magazines myself, I have collected quite a stack from free ones sent in the mail or given… {read more}

Mealtime Moments: Printable Activity Cards to Build Character at the Table

Mealtime Moments is a set of 30 printable activity cards for building character over a family meal. All you will need to follow the activities is what you will already have at the table! (Some activities require some food or a utensil, for example.) Each card offers a simple activity which focuses on exploring one… {read more}

DIY Inspirational Collages

Last month my mom was in the hospital for a couple weeks for a surgery. Because I live across the world (we are in Australia; whereas the rest of my family is in the USA) I unfortunately could not be there. I wanted, however, to do something that would cheer my mom up and let… {read more}

Teaching Kids To Care For Animals

Last month I shared a simple activity where my son created a “habitat” for his favorite toy snake (see that post here) and since then I have been on the lookout for other hands-on activities we could do to learn more about caring for animals. So far we have mostly been reading books and watching… {read more}

DIY Multicultural Banner: Help Kids Appreciate Diversity

If you are looking for a way to instill love for the world into your children, you may like this simple idea of creating your own multicultural banner. I shared how we made ours over at Kid World Citizen, one of my favorite websites for finding materials to teach kids about the world. We are… {read more}

Fun Group Game To Learn About Concentration and Focus

This is an easy group game to help kids learn about what it means to “concentrate” and “focus.” All you need is a large ball and at least 2 kids (who each have their own smaller balls). It would be appropriate for both a playgroup and a larger class exercise, though more kids would probably… {read more}

10 Fun Ball Games To Use To Help Kids Practice Kind Words

Children love to play ball. And most of them could benefit from a little extra practice being kind. So why not use ball games to help children practice using kind words? You may talk about kindness when you play ball already – like by asking your child to please use a kind voice (if they… {read more}

Activities for Kids