KurtzP_logo_kp1_700
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • WHAT & HOW WE TREAT
    • What do we treat?
    • Telehealth Therapy Sessions
    • How to Pick a Therapy and a Therapist
    • Good Faith Estimate (GFE)
    • Evidence-based treatments – “EBTs”
    • WHAT & HOW WE TREAT
  • SELECTIVE MUTISM
    • What is Selective Mutism?
    • Mighty Mouth Kids Camp
    • Selective Mutism & Social Anxiety Groups
    • SM Parent Training Groups
    • SM Learning University
    • Research on PCIT-SM
    • PCIT-SM Certified Therapists
    • SM-BOT: The Behavioral Observation Test for PCIT-SM
    • Selective Mutism Resources
    • PCIT-SM Treatment Handouts
  • PARENT-CHILD INTERACTION THERAPY (PCIT)
    • What is Parent Training?
    • What is Parent-Child Interaction Therapy?
    • PCIT Trackers
  • PROFESSIONAL TRAINING
    • Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) Training for Mental Health Professionals
    • Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Adapted for Selective Mutism (PCIT-SM) Training
    • Within Agency Training for PCIT Therapists to Become Trainers
    • Training & Consulting for Professionals
    • Pre-Professional Training
    • Teacher-Child Interaction Training (TCIT) for Educators & Schools
  • VIDEO LIBRARY
  • CONTACT
Join Us On Social Media
KurtzP_logo_kp1_700
KurtzP_logo_kp1_700
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • WHAT & HOW WE TREAT
    • What do we treat?
    • Telehealth Therapy Sessions
    • How to Pick a Therapy and a Therapist
    • Good Faith Estimate (GFE)
    • Evidence-based treatments – “EBTs”
    • WHAT & HOW WE TREAT
  • SELECTIVE MUTISM
    • What is Selective Mutism?
    • Mighty Mouth Kids Camp
    • Selective Mutism & Social Anxiety Groups
    • SM Parent Training Groups
    • SM Learning University
    • Research on PCIT-SM
    • PCIT-SM Certified Therapists
    • SM-BOT: The Behavioral Observation Test for PCIT-SM
    • Selective Mutism Resources
    • PCIT-SM Treatment Handouts
  • PARENT-CHILD INTERACTION THERAPY (PCIT)
    • What is Parent Training?
    • What is Parent-Child Interaction Therapy?
    • PCIT Trackers
  • PROFESSIONAL TRAINING
    • Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) Training for Mental Health Professionals
    • Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Adapted for Selective Mutism (PCIT-SM) Training
    • Within Agency Training for PCIT Therapists to Become Trainers
    • Training & Consulting for Professionals
    • Pre-Professional Training
    • Teacher-Child Interaction Training (TCIT) for Educators & Schools
  • VIDEO LIBRARY
  • CONTACT

The Attitude of Gratitude

November 18, 2021
-
Posted by Valerie Carozza, BS

The season of giving thanks is right around the corner, making it the perfect time to start thinking about the role of gratitude in our daily lives. Feelings of gratitude and appreciation can have profound impacts on our own health and our children’s health in many ways. Generally, gratitude is linked with experiencing more positive emotions, resulting in increased mood, even in children as young as 4 years old. Gratitude can also impact peer and family relationships by promoting engagement in helping behaviors, such as sharing. Check out the tips below for incorporating practices into your parenting toolkit and family routines to help promote gratitude and overall well-being in your children.  

Parenting Practices

Modeling. When parents demonstrate and verbalize their own feelings of gratitude in various moments, it helps kids understand and internalize what that looks and feels like. Expressing your own feelings in moments of gratitude is an easy way to model appreciation.

Exposure to environments that value gratitude. Support your child’s development of gratitude by ensuring they spend time in places and with people that also reinforce gratitude. One easy way to increase their exposure to concepts of gratitude are by including books that talk about the importance of showing appreciation.

Scaffolding gratitude throughout the day. Reminding children throughout their day to practice being grateful and pointing out opportunities to show appreciation can help kids internalize these skills and learn to identify appropriate moments to express or notice feelings of gratitude.

Having discussions with kids about gratitude. Talking to children about what gratitude is, how it makes us and others feel, and ways to express gratitude can be the first step in giving your child the tools to.

Bonus tip! Give your child a speecific praise for a behavior that might indicate gratitude (such as “thanks so much for sharing”) for a double dose of modeling your own appreciation and reinforcing a specific behavior related to gratitude!

Family Practices

Use a gratitude jar. Place an empty jar in your family’s kitchen or living room and fill it with things that you are grateful for. Set aside a time each day to write down one thing you’re grateful for on a strip of paper and watch the jar fill up over time! At special times like birthdays or holidays, each family member can read aloud some things from the jar.

Keep a gratitude journal. For older children, having a journal where they can write down things they are grateful for is an age-appropriate way to help foster feelings of appreciation and enhance their mood & well-being. For an extra boost, starting the day by writing in a gratitude journal before school can help start the day off on the right foot.

Have a Family Day of Gratitude. Set aside a specific day of gratitude for you and your family to tell others that you are thankful for them! This can be done through visiting loved ones, writing letters or notes, or giving a friend a phone call. Whatever way you choose to show your appreciation to someone else, aim to have a regular day where you and your family members express gratitude.

Remember, the development of gratitude is an ongoing process that can contribute to your child’s feelings of positive emotions and overall well-being. Incorporating some of these ideas into regular practice can help your child develop necessary social emotional skills and feel happier!

References:

Nguyen, S. P., & Gordon, C. L. (2019). The relationship between gratitude and happiness in young children. Journal of Happiness Studies: An Interdisciplinary Forum on Subjective Well-Being. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-019-00188-6

Shoshani A, De-Leon Lendner K, Nissensohn A, Lazarovich G, Aharon-Dvir O. Grateful and kind: The prosocial function of gratitude in young children’s relationships. Dev Psychol. 2020 Jun;56(6):1135-1148. doi: 10.1037/dev0000922. Epub 2020 Apr 2. PMID: 32237875.

Hussong, A. M., Coffman, J. L., & Halberstadt, A. G. (2021). Parenting and the development of children’s gratitude. Child Development Perspectives. Advance online publication. https://doi-org.elibrary.einsteinmed.org/10.1111/cdep.12434

Chowbury, M. R. (2021, October 9). The neuroscience of gratitude and how it affects anxiety & grief. Positivepsychology.com. https://positivepsychology.com/neuroscience-of-gratitude/

Email

Related

Other posts that you should not miss.

Bullying 101

October 20, 2021
October is National Bullying Prevention Month, and there is no better time to familiarize ourselves with the signs of bullying and what we can do to help. Bullying…
Read More →
Posted by Christine Cho, PsyD
6 MIN READ

Family Health and Fitness

June 16, 2021
Exercise is important for our minds and bodies. Being active reduces the risk of chronic health problems later in life, helps kids do better in school, and reduce…
Read More →
Posted by Brooke Edelman, MA
3 MIN READ

Tips For Talking About Body Safety With Kids

December 1, 2021
Body safety has to do with teaching children about their bodies, private sexual body parts, and healthy boundaries to prevent them from falling vulnerable to child sexual abuse.…
Read More →
Screenshot 2018-12-21 15.24.12
Posted by Kate Gibson, PsyD, ABPP
4 MIN READ
Kurtz Psychology
  • Home
  • About Us
  • What do we treat?
  • What is Selective Mutism?
  • What is Parent Training?
  • Videos
  • Employment
  • Contact Us
Explore Next Steps
  • Mighty Mouth Kids Camp
  • Lunch ‘n Learn Webinars
  • Selective Mutism Resources
  • Pre-Professional Training
  • What is Parent-Child Interaction Therapy?
  • What is Selective Mutism?
  • Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) Training for Mental Health Professionals
Recent Blog Posts
  • April 6, 2022
    Supporting Your Child’s Sleep
  • April 1, 2022
    How to Support Anxious Children in Being Brave
  • March 10, 2022
    Awareness is Prevention: Self Harm Awareness Month
©2019 Kurtz Psychology, All Rights Reserved
Facebook Instagram Twitter
The Attitude of Gratitude | Kurtz Psychology