A Hands-On Lesson about Giving for Kids, Plus Quick Tips for Busy Families in Friday’s Fast Five 16th Edition

Building a stronger, happier family is at the top of most parents’ list. However, we are busy! These weekly Fast Five ideas and tips are a quick way to brainstorm, check-in, and create the family relationships you really want. This week’s Fast Five includes making gingerbread houses, a hands-on lesson about giving for kids, and more. Happy Friday!

* These ideas are NOT meant to be a checklist or guilt trip of things we “should do.” Rather, they are intended to inspire you to find what works for YOUR family to learn, laugh, and love together. Remember to stick to the Simple Side of Parenting.

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What is Friday’s Fast Five?

Each Friday, we share five quick and simple ideas for families under the following categories:

1. Something Fun

This is an activity, game, entertainment recommendation, or simple outing for family fun.

2. A Little Lesson

Here you will find a simple lesson to help teach kids important ideas. Examples include life skills or personal qualities like kindness and patience.

3. A Service Idea

Volunteering is good for our mental and physical health. Serving together strengthens relationships with those we serve and those we serve with. Service can be fun and eye-opening. Service is an important way to learn, laugh, and love together.

4. Something Random

This is a random thought, idea, quote, or meme, typically to help you smile. 🙂

5. A Quick Tip

Here you will find a quick parenting or family tip for peaceful parenting or building a stronger, happier family. These come from research, personal experience, or those common sense reminders we all need to hear once in a while.

Subscribers also receive exclusive tips and downloads to simplify parenting life.

With that, here is the sixteenth edition of Friday’s Fast Five. (You can find other editions HERE.)

1. Something Fun: Gingerbread Houses

Making gingerbread houses is a hit with all ages. Gather your materials, turn on some music, and let the creativity flow.

Make the base of authentic gingerbread houses by baking gingerbread from scratch. Plan ahead for this version as it will take time to make, cut, and bake the dough before the houses can be assembled.

You can also make simplified gingerbread houses using graham crackers as the walls and roof. These houses are smaller, but they work great for kids. You can reinforce the house by building it around an empty carton, like the kind from half and half or a pint of whip cream.

Use royal icing to build the houses and then decorate with a variety of candies. Add ice cream cones for trees or towers.

If you want to build a gingerbread house that still looks great with less baking, consider using a Gingerbread Decorating Kit.

Click image for purchasing information.

2. A Little Lesson: A Lesson about Giving for Kids

Giving can bring a lot of joy to our lives. This little lesson about giving for kids can be one piece of helping our children choose to give.

Research shows that kids are more likely to give to charitable organizations or religious congregations and volunteer if their parents model giving AND talk to them about giving.

This simple lesson about giving for kids is an easy way for parents to do that.

Introduce the topic of giving with a short inspirational video.

Here are three videos that teach a lesson about giving for kids.

• The Gift of Giving
  • In this video, Hakim follows his grandpa’s example of giving and chooses a simple but meaningful act of kindness for his friend.
• How a Simple Act of Kindness Creates an Endless Ripple
  • This video shows a story about how a family is influenced for good when an unknown gentleman buys them a cake they want but can’t afford.
• The Cheerful Giver
  • This simple, animated poem about sharing shows a girl who willingly gives away her chocolate chip cookie to the animals at the park.

Conversation about Giving

Have a family discussion about how others feel when we give to them. Talk about how we feel when we give freely. Brainstorm ideas about how you could give as individuals or as a family.

Make it a hands-on lesson about giving for kids by doing one of the ideas. Research also shows that we get more joy from giving when we choose it, so have your kids help decide who they want to give to and what they want to give.

Remember, giving doesn’t always mean money. We can give of our time or talents too.

See the next service idea for some options.

Wondering how to fit Little Lessons (Like this Lesson about Giving for Kids) into your busy family schedule?

The two main ways to fit important lessons into your busy family schedule are to find spontaneous teaching moments throughout the day and to schedule family learning time each week. These two posts go into detail about these two ways and tips for making it happen with your family.

How Busy Parents Can Teach Important Life Lessons

6 Tips for Family Time that Teaches Life’s Most Important Lessons

3. A Service Idea: Give a Gift

Make it a hands-on lesson about giving for kids by providing a gift for a child in need.

Have your kids help buy or pick out a gift for a child in need. You can give the gift to a local family you know personally or through an Angel Tree.

Toys for Tots and Operation Christmas Child both have online options for socially distanced circumstances. Additionally, Operation Christmas Child accepts shoeboxes year round, so if you’re looking for a family service idea outside of the holidays, you can still consider this option.

If you are looking for more holiday service ideas, check this post of 25+ Holiday Service Projects for Families or Individuals.

Service is a great way to build a stronger, happier family. If you want more service ideas, request Raising Compassionate Children in a Conceited World, which includes 101 Service Ideas for Families.

4. Something Random: Buddy the Elf

It’s December, so you know we’re watching Elf. But I realized something new this time around.

Trivia: What flavor of Pop-Tarts does Buddy put in his spaghetti?

Watch the movie clip to see if you’re right.

5. A Quick Tip: Mindset and Mechanics

Sometimes it’s hard as a parent to know what to focus on when things get overwhelming. This realization is really helpful for me…

When life gets overwhelming, we can find calm by focusing on the things we can control, starting with our mindset.

The mechanics or routines that lead to success in the home are important. These are things we all want like a routine for getting the kids in bed on time without starting World War III and a system for getting dinner on the table before midnight, even if it’s a busy day.

We need the mechanics. But it requires a healthy mindset to have the patience and vision that will actually allow us to follow-through with the mechanics.

What do we care about most? How are we viewing our kids? What do we believe is possible in our homes? Are we choosing to focus on all we have to be grateful for? Do we believe we’re worthy of health and happiness?

If you’re ready to set your mindset and mechanics for 2021, to create a year of calm, confidence, and joy, no matter what the world continues to throw at us, I invite you to participate in Crush Mom Overwhelm.

This two-hour virtual masterclass and small group coaching opportunity will help you reset from the craziness of 2020. It will help you shape your life so you head to bed each night feeling yes tired, but also fulfilled. Fulfilled and calm, even if you’re in the season of juggling all the things.

This event is happening soon, so click this button to learn more today!

And that is Friday’s Fast Five!

You can also see Friday’s Fast Five on Instagram or other editions HERE.

Building a Stronger, Happier Family

It takes time and intention to build a stronger, happier family. I hope Friday’s Fast Five helps you find the ways that work for YOUR family to learn, laugh, and love together.

We will never regret the time we devote to our families and relationships with our kids.

Have a great weekend with your family, know that you’re loved, and keep on lovin’!

Do you have a great idea for a future Friday’s Fast Five? Have a question or parenting struggle you want help with? Share in the comments, shoot me an Email, or schedule a call.

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