11 Activities to Encourage a Positive Attitude in Your Kids

Want to encourage your kids to develop a positive attitude? Click through to discover oursimple hands on activities to help your children to focus on the positive in their lives! Includes a free printable.

smiling positive child with a handful of dandelions

This post is part of our positive parenting guide, where you’ll find lots of helpful parenting advice and tips. For more on raising well-adjusted kids, check out our posts on character development.

At the library where I work we see many children. It is always a joy to see them running in with big smiles.

As far as they are concerned everything is fun and the world is a wonderful place.

But sometimes children will come in with a bad case of the grumps. Nothing pleases them and any attempt to engage with them is met with the pouting lip!

I know which kind of child I prefer to deal with. It all boils down to attitude doesn’t it.

When kids have a positive attitude it makes family life WAY MORE FUN! For that reason it was something I definitely wanted my children to develop.

But even more importantly developing a positive outlook is probably one of the most important contributing factors to emotional well-being. I’m guessing that is something we all want for our children.

Personality And Positive Thinking

I have discovered that there are some personality types that find it easier to think positively. Two of my boys were natural optimists and didn’t need much encouragement.

My oldest on the other hand was more like Eyore and needed more help from me.

Still no matter what your child’s natural inclination, I’ve found that you can help your children develop a positive outlook to life.

Check out the Positivity Kit from Big Life Journal. 40 pages of printable activities to promote a positive attitude in your kids. Download, print, and go.

Find Out More Here

It Starts With You

Children do as they see, not as they’re told. If you consistently model a positive attitude towards life, then your family will probably will do the same. Think you need to work on this? Here’s a helpful post about developing A Positive Mental Attitude from Tiny Budhha.

What Else Can We Do?

A good way to start is to enjoy some fun family activities that will help you focus on the positive. I’ve collected 10 easy ideas to help inspire you.

Bonus: All of these activities will provide opportunities for you to get to know your children better.

11 Hands On Activities To Encourage A Positive Attitude

Introduce Some Positive Mantras:

Did you know that positive mantras help develop a positive outlook? In 2015 scientists scanned the brains of subjects as they silently repeated a mantra. The scans showed reduction in activity across the brain.

Guess where the reduction was most noticeable? The brain responsible for self reflection and self judgement. In other words, a good mantra can stop negative thoughts in their tracks.

But how to get those mantras embedded in your kid’s brain? Our growth mindset coloring sheets might help.

Coloring is a great family activity, and it is a great way to introduce some positive mantras. Talk about the phrases as you color.

I would encourage you to keep the discussion light. Let message on the coloring sheets sink into your child’s heart and brain.

Grab our inspiring coloring sheets and encourage positive thinking. Each sheet features cute animals and inspiring messages for your kids.

Learn More Here

Keep Quote Books (Older Kids)

Words have power, so why not surround your kids with positive thoughts?

Have you ever read a positive quote at just the right moment? Think about the powerful impact it had. Now imagine what those positive thoughts can do for your kids.

Provide little notebooks and pens. These books are cute and so are these. I like the fact that there is space for drawing.

Every week (or month) you choose a positive quote to share with your kids. Have each family member write down the quote. As a family have some discussion and enjoy some activities around the quote.

The idea is that your kids will build up a collection of positive and encouraging thoughts that will help them in the future. Try it for a few months and see if it makes a difference.

For helpful quotes try

T h e Big Life Journal Inspirations Quotes Bundle
Inspire my kids website
Changing Kids’ Lives One Quote At A Time: 121 Inspirational Sayings To Build Character In Children
Can Do: A Collection of Inspirational Quotes for Teens and Young Adults

Success Of The Day

Each night invite family members to talk about their Success of the Day. These could include

Helping someone
Standing up for a peer
Standing up for something you believe in.
A learning accomplishment
A skill mastered
Learning something new
An act of kindness
A good conversation
Finishing a project

The goal is to focus on accomplishments . Keep a simple journal of these successes and celebrate them together. You’ll find that success tends to breed more success.

A daily ritual like this will help your children look for success throughout the day. After a while they will go into the day expecting to find success. Sneaky huh?

Of course it is important to acknowledge mistakes and failures, but one redeeming things about mistakes is that they provide opportunity for learning and growth. We can help our children discern those lessons.

Warm Fuzzy Jars

Create Warm Fuzzy Jars to create a more positive home – Read more at Hands Free Mama.

Morning Love Notes

Make your kids smile with some Morning Love Notes. Even better invite your children to help make them for their siblings- read more at Coffee Cups and Crayons.

Do Something Kind

Choose an Act of Kindness to help you kids experience what a positive difference kindness can make. Check out our Ultimate Guide to Raising Kind Kids

Art Projects To Encourage A Positive Attitude

Use Art

Use art to help children learn how to manage large feelings and turn them around. Get the instructions from Imperfect Families.

Slinky Character Trait Person

Have everyone make a Slinky Character Trait Person. Encourage family members to suggest positive character traits they see in each other. Hang the finished people where they can be seen each day to encourage positive self-dialogue. Download a free template here.

Vision Boards

Make a vision board to share your dreams and goals with each other. Follow the simple instructions from Overstuffed Life.

Motivational Art Activity

Help children increase their creative confidence and self-esteem with this motivational art activity from Buggy and Buddy! Fill the spaces with positive affirmations.

Gratitude Stones

Make gratitude stones to help kids cultivate an attitude of gratitude from an early age. Get the instructions from Fireflies and Mudpies.

Surround your kids with positive thoughts. This beautifully illustrated collection features over 40 inspirational quotes. Just print and frame.

Find Out More Here

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