Neighbor News
Four Ways to Encourage Gratitude by Dr. Kyle D. Pruett, M.D
The Goddard School Educational Advisory Board, offers four tips on how to encourage gratitude.
Teaching children how to be grateful is important. Dr. Kyle Pruett, clinical professor of child psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine and member of The Goddard School Educational Advisory Board, offers four tips on how to encourage gratitude.
- Regularly express your own thankfulness verbally. Saying things such as “We are very lucky to have grandma nearby” or “I’m thankful to have a son like you in my life” or “Your dad made that so easy for all of us” can help demonstrate the appreciation you have for the people around you.
- Express gratitude behaviorally. Take a casserole to a neighbor who has been kind or needs some extra help for whatever reason—even better if the children help you make it. When the hand-me-down toys end their cycle, make a thrift store run with the children in tow.
- Make generosity part of your family’s routine. When seasons change, collect clothes from everyone’s closet to donate or take canned goods to the local soup kitchen.
- Take the children along on community fundraising activities, runs, walks, etc. Explain to them why this matters to you. Make sure your children meet the organizers and understand the purpose; if it’s personal, it’s remembered.
Kyle D. Pruett, M.D., is an advisor for The Goddard School®. Dr. Pruett is an authority on child development who has been practicing child and family psychiatry for over twenty-five years. He is a clinical professor of child psychiatry at Yale University's Child Study Center.
The Goddard School has become the first preschool program to join P21—a national organization championing 21st century skills. Through the fusion of reading, writing & arithmetic with the 4Cs—critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity—Goddard School graduates are well equipped and ready to succeed in school and in life.
Visiting our School is a great way to see our programs in action, introduce you to our teachers and answer your questions.
The Goddard School in Snellville
EMAIL: snellvillega@goddardschools.com
Phone: 678-344-0042
FAX: 770-985-5262
1565 Janmar Road
Snellville, GA 30078
http://www.goddardschool.com/atlanta/snellville-janmar-road-ga
