25 Random Acts of Kindness Ideas for Kids

Friday, February 17 is Random Acts of Kindness Day. So in honor of that, I am sharing a few ideas for random acts of kindness that you can do with kids of all ages.

1. Go through your pantry or go to or buy food and drop it off at a food pantry

2. Go through closets and donate unwanted clothes/socks to a homeless shelter

3. Leave happy notes around town

4. Leave a thank you note or picture in your mailbox for your mail carrier

5. Encourage your child to talk to someone new at school and follow up with them at the end of the day.

6. Bake treats with your children and drop them off at the fire or police station

7. Make a craft to share with a neighbor

8. Write kindness notes on sticky notes and leave them on neighbors' doors

9. Encourage your child to help their teacher clean up the classroom at the end of the day (follow up and ask about what they did to help)

10. Encourage your child to sit with someone at lunch who normally sits alone (follow up)

11. Walk around the parking lot at a grocery store and return carts to the cart corral

12. Make cards for a retirement home

13. Out shopping and seeing clothes on the floor? Rehang or fold fallen clothes

14. Make homeless kids with travel-size hygiene products and hand them out to people who are homeless

15. Donate old blankets to a pet shelter

16. Go out to a park and pick up litter

17. Encourage your child to help clean up a mess they didn't make

18. Encourage your child to hold to door open

19. Let someone cut in line

20. Make kindness rocks and place them around a local park for people to find

21. Write encouraging messages in chalk around town

22. Make a neighbor's dinner

23. Help your child pick a cause they care about and donate their weekly allowance

24. Call a friend or family member just to say hello

25. Make a family kindness jar and have everyone write down ideas they would like to do in the future. Then you can select ideas on random days.

Discuss with the whole family why kindness and generosity matter. Brainstorm as a family ways everyone can show kindness every day, not just on Random Acts of Kindness Day. And have fun! Being kind and doing something for someone else will likely make everyone in the family feel good.

Remember Mama, you are doing a great job! You got this!

20 Tips for Reading to an Early-Elementary-Aged Child

Reading to your child has so many benefits for children ages 0 to 14 - check out my post about all of the benefits here. From my experience as a teacher, children who are readers are more successful in every academic area. Reading is just so important, so I am sharing tips below to make reading more fun and more beneficial for your early-elementary-aged child.

20 Tips:

1. Make reading a game (example: hunt for specific words on billboards and signs when you are in the car)

2. Encourage them to think of Rhyming words (example: you are reading Pete the Cat, and you can ask them to think of words that rhyme with Cat)

3. Make storytime interactive - puppets, toys, costumes, acting out characters, etc.

4. Make crafts related to the books you are reading

5. Create a reading area (no digital technology allowed)

6. Read the book together first then see the movie

7. Let your child pick out the book they want to read

8. Find books on topics your child is interested in

9. Have your child retell the story

10. Ask questions about the book (you can do this as they are retelling the story)

11. Bring a book with you whenever your child will have to wait (doctor's office, dentist's office, etc.)

12. Pick a new vocabulary word you will focus on for your book and create a signal (ex. cheering) your child will give when they hear the word. Then ask them to tell you what the word means.

13. Help your child with making connections between the book and their experiences.

14. Re-read books - this helps children read more quickly and accurately

15. Take turns reading aloud - let them read to you too!

16. Be patient - give your child time to sound things out without giving them the word

17. Point out the first letter(s) and letter groups your child may recognize

18. Making storytime a part of your routine

19. Try reading in different places in your home or outside - even better if it relates to what you are reading (example: the park for a book that takes place outside, a dark room with a flashlight for a book that takes place at night.)

20. Have fun! Your child is more likely to enjoy reading if you do

Sources of Information:

• CCA

• Reading Rockets

• National Center on Improving Literacy

• NAEYC

Remember Mama, you are doing a great job! You got this!

Screen Time for 0 - 2 year-olds

In my experience, screen time is a very sensitive issue for many moms. So I want to start by saying this post is only to provide information - no judgments. Every parent has to make the best decision for their child/family in their situation.

For my family, we decided before my son was born that we were going to have a 0 screen time policy until age two. So far, we have achieved this (21 months). I am glad we decided before he was born because there have been many times when I wanted to turn the TV on for him, but have stuck to my original decision.

So I am sharing information on screen time below so that you have all of the information on screen time for children ages 0 to 2.

Screen Time Recommendations:

Did you know that the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the World Health Organization recommend that children ages 0 to 2 have no screen time?

(Note: Video chatting with grandparents, family, and friends is the exception to this because it is considered quality time interacting with others).

AAP, UNICEF, and Kids Health provide the following information for screen time:

Why avoid screen time?

• Children under age two cannot learn from digital media as they can learn from interactions with caregivers

• They have difficulty transferring knowledge learned in digital media to real life

• It affects sleep - children exposed to screens have shorter sleep durations

• Screens reduce empathy

• Affects their ability to control impulses - being bored teaches kids how to cope with frustration and control their impulses

• Affects attention span

• Children who are not exposed to screens are more likely to have better social and cognitive skills as well as be healthier as they grow

If Screen Time is Necessary:

So I know there may be times when screen time is necessary. For example, when you need to get something done. Below are some tips to make screen time beneficial (benefits will likely be minimal to nothing until 18 months).

• Watch with your child (or know what they are watching) and talk about what they are watching (preferably during the programming)

• Reteach what is being taught in the programming your child is watching.

• Try to only allow screen time earlier in the day, so it does not affect sleep

• Only allow your child to watch high-quality, educational programming.

• Limit screen time as much as possible (less than one hour per day)

• Research games or apps before allowing your child to play them -- personal recommendation: try to choose games/apps that do not automatically play a sound or reward at timed intervals (these make games addicting)

• Be sure your child is getting plenty of non-screen time in their day

• Turn off devices during meals

• Set a good example - model the behavior you want them to have (I know this is one I need to work on sometimes!)

If you have questions about media use, be sure to talk to your child's doctor.

Tips for No Screen Time:

As I mentioned earlier, we have chosen no screen time for our little one. So I wanted to share some tips in case you would also like to try no screen time.

1. Be Prepared - have age-appropriate toys and come up with activities and games so you have an idea of what you will do with your little one.

2. Be engaged - play with them and have fun

3. Try to stay off your phone (I admit, I sometimes have a hard time with this one!)

4. Play outside - research shows being outside increases happiness so no one will miss screens

5. Encourage independent, self-directed play for when you need to get things done: Let your child direct the play, so you are not entertaining them

6. Have a toddler stool - we have one for our kitchen and my son loves to be in the kitchen helping and watching what is going on (this makes it easier to cook and clean in the kitchen)

7. Have a good number (not too many but enough to keep them entertained) of toys that foster imagination and creativity. Toys without batteries are great!

8. Have toys and books that they can access without your help.

9. Be sure their space is safe, so your attention can be elsewhere when trying to accomplish something.

10. Let your child be - trust them to decide what to play with and for how long; let them play and explore without interruption; let them struggle a little bit because that is how they will learn (this is so hard for me because I want to help him when he is struggling!)

If your child has already had screen time and you would like to reduce it, you can find some great tips here.

We have had a great experience limiting screen time for our little one - I think it has been the healthiest option for the whole family. At age two, we will likely allow some educational digital media in small amounts, but I plan to strictly limit it still. I am planning on doing more research on screen time for older kids in the future and I will definitely share it! Remember that the AAP recommends the following screen times for all ages of kids:

• No screen time for children under 2

• One hour per day for children 2 to 12

• Two hours per day for teens and adults

Remember Mama, you are doing a great job! You got this!