Gratitude Activity for Preschoolers – Leaf Garland

Introducing a creative and engaging gratitude activity for preschoolers – the Leaf Garland. This activity perfectly aligns with our Thanksgiving preschool theme, offering a unique way to teach thankfulness to our little learners.

Preschoolers get a chance to create stunning marbleized paper leaf garland, serving as a daily reminder of thankfulness. We’ll tell you how. Dive in and discover more about this exciting gratitude activity for preschoolers.

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The beauty of this gratitude activity for preschoolers lies in its simplicity and the profound lessons it imparts.

It not only teaches children about thankfulness but also gives them a platform to express their feelings. Every morning, the anticipation of adding a new leaf creates a lot of excitement, reinforcing the Thanksgiving preschool theme.

As each day passes, the leaf garland expands, reminding the children of how there are always more things to be thankful for. This is a must-add activity to your Thanksgiving preschool lesson plans on your Gratitude lesson plans for preschoolers.

We’re making learning gratitude fun for preschoolers by blending art and feelings.

How to Teach Thankfulness to Preschoolers

Teaching thankfulness to preschoolers involves helping them understand and express appreciation for the good things in their lives.

Being thankful means recognizing the value of something or someone, and expressing gratitude for it. It’s about acknowledging the kindness, big or small, that others show us and the positive aspects of our lives.

To teach this to preschoolers, start by explaining what being thankful means in simple terms they can understand. Use everyday situations as teaching opportunities.

For instance, when a child receives a toy from a friend, you can highlight how nice it was for the friend to share and encourage the child to express their thanks.

Create a “thankfulness” routine, such as sharing one thing they’re thankful for each day. This could be during circle time or before snack time.

Additionally, books and stories that illustrate thankfulness can be used as teaching tools. Over time, these activities will help preschoolers grasp the concept of thankfulness and incorporate it into their behavior.

Why Do Gratitude Activities for Preschoolers

Teaching gratitude to preschoolers is crucial for several reasons.

• It helps in the development of their social and emotional skills.
  • When children learn to appreciate the actions of others, they become more empathetic and understanding.
• Numerous studies indicate that gratitude is linked to happiness and overall well-being.
  • Children who practice gratitude tend to have a more positive outlook on life and are better equipped to handle adversity. [source]
• Teaching gratitude at a young age lays the foundation for a lifelong habit of appreciation.
  • It encourages them to focus on the good in their lives, fostering a sense of contentment and satisfaction. [source]
  • It also aids in building stronger relationships as they grow older. Therefore, incorporating gratitude lessons in preschool education is not just beneficial but essential for a child’s holistic growth. [source]

Gratitude Leaf Garland – a Thankfulness Activity

Explore the fun world of teaching gratitude to preschoolers with an engaging activity: creating a beautiful marbleized paper leaf garland.

This craft not only allows children to express their creativity, but also serves as a daily reminder of thankfulness. So, let’s unravel the process and delve deeper into this exciting gratitude-filled activity for your little ones.

Materials

• shaving cream
• washable tempura paint
• sturdy paper
• circut cutting machine (optional)
• yarn or twine
• marbleized paper tutorial

How to Make the Gratitude Leaf Garland

The steps are really simple.

Begin by finding your favorite tutorial on how to make marbled paper using shaving cream and paint. My favorite is this one by The Artful Parent.

• Marbleize your paper using the shaving cream and paint.
  • This is our favorite tutorial on shaving cream marbleized paper.
• Allow to dry completly.
• Use a cutting machine to cut out leaf shapes.
  • Alternatively, you can have your preschoolers do this.
• Attach the leaves to the twine by hot gluing or hole punching the leaves.
• Write on the leaves things your preschoolers are thankful for.

Lesson on Gratitude

We spend all of November discussing being thankful and what that looks like for a preschooler. This takes place during our morning circle time.

After all the leaves have been cut for the garland, we do not add them to the twine immediately. Instead, we add to our garland over the course of the entire month.

Each day we add one to three new leaves, each one having something new we are thankful for written upon it.

And each day I read out loud to the preschoolers all the previously added leaves, so we are always reminded of what we are thankful for.

Books about Thankfulness

Reading picture books with a thankfulness theme can be a powerful tool in teaching preschoolers about gratitude.

These visually engaging stories can illustrate examples of thankfulness in relatable scenarios, helping children to understand and adopt the practice of expressing gratitude in their own lives.

Thankful Activities for Preschoolers

Engaging in thankfulness activities is a wonderful and interactive way to instill a sense of gratitude in preschoolers from an early age. Try some of these other gratitude activities for preschoolers.

• Thankfulness Tree
• Gratitude Garden
• 3-D “I’m Thankful” Turkey Craft
• Be Thankful Jars
• Thank You Card Ideas

Sarah Punkoney, MAT

I’m Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home-mama of five! I’m the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught a range of levels, from preschool to college and a little bit of everything in between. Right now my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction.

stayathomeeducator.com/