With the holiday season on the horizon, I am sharing our family’s favorite books about gratitude. These books carry an important message and will spark important conversations and learning. I hope they will bring a smile to the end of your day, and gratitude to your heart.
25 Books About Gratitude to Inspire Kindness at Home
Books about gratitude to help children learn to be thankful
The THANKFUL Book by Todd Parr
My childrenĀ love Todd Parr and they have been begging me to include one of his books in our monthly book club lists. Parr is known for his happy-go-lucky, brilliantly colored, and simple to read texts. Each book comes with an important message and you can’t help but smile when you close the cover at the end of your read aloud.
Just So Thankful (Little Critter) by Mercer Mayer
I have loved Mercer Mayer since I was a little girl. I love There’s a Nightmare in My Closet, There’s an Alligator Under my Bed, There’s Something in my Attic, and I could go on and on and on. I also loved Little Critter as a child. The poor guy always means well, but he usually causes a lot of chaos. Now, as a mom, Little Critter reminds me ofĀ myĀ little critters. He never fails to make my kids belly laugh and belly laughs are something to be thankful for!
Grateful: A Song of Giving Thanks by John Bucchino
We recentl
y received this book as a gift and it has quickly become a family treasure. With beautiful illustrations,Ā Grateful carries an important message of love and gratitude. The book comes with the song on CD, sung by Art Garfunkel. New to me, the song itself has been around for a while. My kids love it and I’m glad we’ve discovered this perfect-for-Thanksgiving gem.
Thanks for Thanksgiving by Julie Markes
A family friend gave me this book on my first Thanksgiving as a mother, and it has become a beloved family classic. We read it every year together. Perfect for the week of Thanksgiving, this sweet little story will get your children in the holiday spirit!
Other favorite books about gratitude:
Activities to build gratitude:
Gratitude Journals
Grandparent Journals
Just So Thankful Jar
Family Kindness Buckets
Top Ten Ways for Kids to Give Back
Or, keep it super-simple and watch this movie together:
Looking for ideas for play-based learning?
Here’s how we pair books and games in our homeschool:
Here are some kindness-inspired posts:
I’m thankful for…
Last week, I took my kids on an impromptu vacation. We went up to my parents’ place in the mountains. I do this from time to time. When life starts to feel too crazy, I head up for some space and peace of mind. Anyway, while we were up there we rediscovered the joys of Storyline, and one of the books that we enjoyed via the site was this one:
Have you read it? How have I not read this one before? I don’t even want to ruin it by telling you too much about it. Do you know a phenomenal teacher? Do you know a child struggling to read? Give them this book! I’m thankful to have discovered it and I’m happy to share it with others.
Tell me, folks: What are your favorite books about gratitude? Share here!
Tell me, folks: What are your favorite books about gratitude? Share here!
[…] fantastic conversation and learning. Over the years, our family has enjoyed read alouds focused on being thankful, kindness, mindfulness, and […]
Yeah! I just put a bunch of these on hold at the library. This is something we can all do better at our house. Thanks for compiling the list. š
You’re welcome! Let me know what the kids think!
Androcles and the Lion is a story of gratitude, which is probably available from more than one storyteller, and is also in anthologies of fables and fairytales.
Gratitude is good to _experience_, as well as to receive. Most of the time, we hear it piously extolled as something that we _ought_ to be or feel, or else someone is trying to exact it from us because they didn’t feel that they were thanked enough. But from the heart gratitude is good for the one who us grateful. It’s ennobling, and it’s an experience that is contrary to the propaganda of our society, so your experience is deepened with something you won’t find much of on TV or online.
I completely agree. Now, I’m off to check out the story you mentioned…