50+ Acts Of Kindness For Kids (+ Random Acts Of Kindness Challenge)

The world needs more kindness! Help our next generation adopt that as their mantra by showing them how to demonstrate random acts of kindness. A little kindness goes a LONG way, so here are my favorite random acts of kindness ideas for kids to help raise your kids to be kind kids.

Kids are, by their very nature, fundamentally kind people. Sure, they bicker, and some are bullies (which is a result of the pain they feel internally), but it only takes a little bit of encouragement for them to be kind, generous, and thoughtful.

And when people are kind to others, it grows and multiplies to the people around us. Even just a little bit more kindness makes the world a better place.

The Necessity Of Promoting Random Acts Of Kindness For Kids

Think about young children. They are always ready, willing, and even eager to lend a helping hand or share their toys!

When my kids were little, they wanted to take the broom for me and sweep the floor. They wanted to “save the worms” with me after a rainstorm. They wanted to give birthday gifts to anyone and everyone.

Unfortunately, life, experiences, and hurt can dim those desires in kids. And kids who lose those desires can turn into adults who care more about themselves than they do about others.

Make being kind part of your everyday life! Click on the image to receive your instant download and take the acts of kindness challenge. 👇👇

There’s a study that worked to understand how kids view kindness. It surveyed kids from grades 4-8 and showed that kids identify kindness in their life and know how to do it themselves. Unfortunately, the study also found that children believe there’s less kindness at their school as they transition from childhood to adolescence. 

However, teaching our kids to be kind (even when others around them aren’t) yields many benefits in areas such as:

• Health 
• Emotional
• Social
• Academic
• Self-esteem
• Motivation to learn
• Bullying and violence  

Given all of the benefits that performing kind acts yields, is there any mystery why we need to work so hard to teach our kids to be kind? Let’s decide here and now to preserve our children’s natural kindness!

Practical Ways To Encourage Acts Of Kindness For Kids

Ok, it’s one thing to say that we, as parents, need to support our kids to remain kind. However, actually teaching or encouraging that quality is much harder to do. Here are a few practical tips for inspiring acts of kindness for kids (even when you aren’t watching)!

Altruism

Selflessness and generosity can take many forms from giving of your time, talents, or resources. You can give your kids the gift of volunteering to show them how giving their time doesn’t cost any money but goes a long way toward helping someone physically AND emotionally.

You can donate money toward an organization you believe in, such as your local Food Bank or the Make-A-Wish Foundation. And, of course, you can give items that you don’t need anymore to help someone with a low income afford what they need. Kids can donate their favorite toy, money from their piggy bank, or old books to help less fortunate kids.

Good deeds don’t need to be big – but they’re meaningful.

Request Help

Kids tend to live in a world of their own and may not always clue in on the need for assistance without a little hint. Ask your kids for help when you need it and encourage them to do the same.

With some practice at this, kids will begin to realize that they can offer to help on their own. The tasks don’t need to be huge: taking out the trash here, sweeping the floor there. Putting leftovers away after dinner or pushing the shopping cart while shopping at the store.

Start having your kids help at home, and it’ll translate to other places when the opportunity arises.

Recognize And Show Gratitude For Kindness In Others

Sometimes the best thing you can do is to appreciate when someone else shows kindness. Take the time to recognize and praise your child when they demonstrate kindness acts. And demonstrate these simple gestures for them by complimenting and showing gratitude toward others who do kind deeds. 

Try to be specific and consistent with your efforts!

Teach Kids Empathy

Many adults aren’t able to identify their own feelings, let alone the emotions other people are experiencing. Learning how to recognize and communicate emotions will help your kids have compassion for what others are feeling. 

Talk about emotions with your kids regularly. How did you feel about that experience? What do you think your friend was feeling when she lost her puppy? How do you feel when you help someone else? 

Model those practices for them by labeling your own feelings in certain situations. Describe your experience to them so that they learn to understand the impact their actions have on other people. 

Get your kids thinking with simple questions like, “how do you think your new friend at school feels about not knowing anyone at a new school?” Encourage them to give kind messages when they sense that someone is struggling.

Compassion 

One of the most unkind things so many people do is to judge others. We can’t possibly know the full extent of someone’s experiences, decisions, and actions. Two different people can experience and react to the same situation very uniquely from each other.

Teach your kids that we don’t know how someone else experiences the same situations we do, and give them the benefit of the doubt. Practicing compassion (and empathy!) is an easy way to naturally show more kindness.

Forgiveness

Everyone makes mistakes, and kids need to learn that we are all human and imperfect. If we can teach them not to be too hard on themselves or others, they will learn how to forgive mistakes.

Forgiveness is one of the best acts of kindness for kids – and adults!

Make being kind part of your everyday life! Click on the image to receive your instant download and take the acts of kindness challenge. 👇👇

Practice Makes Permanent

In addition to the suggestions above, take time to spread cheer anytime you can. When we practice doing something and making it a regular part of our lives, it becomes a part of who we are.

I don’t like the phrase “practice makes perfect,” but I DO like an alteration of the phrase: “practice makes permanent.” It’s a terrific reminder that in order to make changes in our lives, we need to practice them.

When you demonstrate this, your kids will learn from your example and model it themselves. Actions are much more powerful than words! And there are opportunities everywhere you turn to model acts of kindness for kids.

50 Ideas Of Random Acts Of Kindness For Kids

I recommend taking on this practice together as a family. Sit down and talk about the importance of identifying emotions, asking for help, generosity, and forgiving mistakes.

Then brainstorm some ideas of kind acts you and your kids can start incorporating into your daily lives. Maybe read some books about kindness for kids to learn more and kick start motivation.

Here are some ideas for acts of kindness for kids to give you a little inspiration.

1. Save a worm on the sidewalk after a rainstorm by putting it back in the grass/ground.
2. Donate some extra food to your local food bank.
3. Give someone flowers.
4. Share your school supplies with a classmate.
5. Give someone a compliment.
6. Leave happy notes for a family member.
7. Donate a book to your local library.
8. Give a homeless person a meal.
9. Donate a book to the pediatrician’s waiting room.
10. Give a teacher a gift (like this Fingerprint Tree).
11. Water a plant.
12. Make homemade gifts for an elderly relative or people in a nursing home.
13. Donate time serving meals at your local soup kitchen.
14. Offer to walk an elderly neighbor or friend’s dog.
15. Say “thank you” to the grocery store bagger or trash man.
16. Hold the door open for someone you don’t know.
17. Rake someone’s leaves or shovel the sidewalk.
18. Let someone else go first.
19. Call a friend or loved one out of the blue.
20. Talk about the acts of kindness you experience.
21. Help bake cookies to give away to someone else.
22. Help put away items in the house.
23. Make someone a thank you card or a get-well card.
24. Paint someone a picture.
25. Bring an extra juice box for a friend.
26. Tell a joke to spread some cheer.
27. Give someone a hug when they’re feeling down.
28. Read a book to a younger sibling.
29. Volunteer at a local organization.
30. Visit an animal shelter and read to dogs or donate old blankets and towels.
31. Make kindness rocks and scatter them throughout your neighborhood as a nice surprise.
32. Donate old toys.
33. Go to the police or fire station and thank officers for their service.
34. Give someone a “just because” card to tell them you care.
35. Make a family kindness jar and let everyone contribute ideas they want to do. 
36. Donate spare change to your favorite charity.
38. Adopt an elderly person in your neighborhood or at a local residential facility to visit regularly.
39. Participate in a family Kindness Challenge.
40. Encourage kids to be generous with their friends.
41. Draw encouraging messages in chalk on the sidewalks around your neighborhood.
42. Clean something up without being asked.
43. Ask your child what they appreciate about people in their life.
44. Say prayers or send kind thoughts to people in your life.
45. Pick up trash in the park or around the neighborhood.
46. Make a care package for someone.
47. Say hello to your neighbors. 
48. Let your child draw a picture and gift it to someone.
49. Offer to pick up groceries for a neighbor or friend who can’t get out of the house.
50. Pack extra snacks and drinks when you visit the playground. Offer them to other kids.
51. Write a thank you note to your mail carrier.
52. Donate items to the homeless shelter.
53. Help make dinner.
54. Make and send care packages to soldiers serving overseas. 
55. Make a get well card for someone.

I hope you find some ideas on this list of acts of kindness for kids that you can adopt with your kids. There are MANY more great ideas out there, so instead of letting this list limit you, let it inspire you to come up with even more random act of kindness ideas! Learning to demonstrate kindness as a part of your life will yield huge rewards in many different areas!

Participate In Random Acts Of Kindness Week

If you’ve never heard of The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation, now is a great time to familiarize yourself with this great organization whose mission is simply to help spread kindness by promoting Random Acts of Kindness day on February 17th, 2023.

Don’t forget to download our Kindness Challenge to make it fun!

Make being kind part of your everyday life! Click on the image to receive your instant download and take the acts of kindness challenge. 👇👇

More Parenting Resources

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