I came across an article this week that is just perfect for my family. I think that it could be helpful to you too. We have our 'elf on the shelf'' and my kids like him. But, as the holidays quickly approach, I am feeling a sense of urgency to help my girls understand the importance of kindness, helpfulness, community, and giving (as opposed to greed and getting and stuff and me, me, me that is so easy to slip into).
This idea of Kindness Elves, or Santa's Helper, or whatever you want to call it, is what we will be doing with our 'Elf on the Shelf'' this year. He will arrive December 1st and will be with us to show how to share the sweetness of the season. I particularly liked the authors idea about having the elf leave notes to the children highlighting something positive they did the previous day. I also liked that her elves would line up shoes or fix a broken toy to directly model kindness and helpfulness. Of course, I loved the idea of the elf being placed near a mixing bowl to make cookies for a neighbor or near the toy box with a note to pick out a few toys to donate. I can't wait to expand on these ideas and I know my girls will have a blast looking for the elf each day and even more fun finding out how we will warm someones heart each day.
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