Benefits of Teaching Your Kids to Send Thank You Cards

Sending thank you cards seems to be a dying art. It seems like it's become more of a chore than something to do from the bottom of your heart because you really are grateful for the gift or act of kindness. 

So, in the spirit of being grateful (with it being almost Thanksgiving and Christmas), I am sharing several tips & tricks about teaching your children to say thank you.  I'm calling it my Thank You Series.  Here's my schedule for the next few days.

Saturday: Simple (& Creative) Ways to Help Your Child Say Thank You
Sunday: Benefits of Teaching Your Kids to Send Thank You Cards You are here!  Read this below!
Monday: Ways to Make Sending Thank You Cards More Fun For Kids 
Tuesday: Thank You Card Etiquette (For Kids)
Wednesday: People You Should Say 'Thank You' To More Often
Thursday: Thanksgiving! 

Teaches Kids To Be Grateful
This might be obvious, but it's true!  If no one ever told you to say thank you as a child, would you still be as grateful for the little things as you are today?  I know I wouldn't!  It's one of those things that is so obvious that we tend to forget it. 

Encourages Creativity
If you get your child in the habit of saying thank you or sending thank you cards, this can encourage their creativity.  It gets them thinking about how to say thank you, as well as how to decorate the card.  Let them at all of your craft supplies & let them make something original.  It might not look like what you were hoping, but chances are, it will mean more to the person that receives it, anyway!

Builds Stronger Relationships
By getting kids in the habit of sending thank you cards (& even just saying thank you), it helps them learn how to foster their current relationships, as well as their future relationships.  When you get a thank you card in the mail, you know you're appreciated & that automatically adds to your relationship with that person.  This is a habit that will benefit your child for their whole life.  It also helps children to learn how to be more compassionate & how to have empathy. 

Teaches Children Manners
This is another obvious one... call me old fashioned, but I feel like kids have less and less manners with each generation.  That's why I try so hard to focus on it with my girls.  I want them to be polite to everyone they interact with, and this is one way I can help them to learn their manners & hopefully the importance of manners.  Manners are more than just please and thank you, it's being respectful & sincere to others. 

Educational Benefits
There are many educational benefits that can come from writing thank you cards.  Whether the child scribbles, draws or writes a thank you card, they are getting practice with their fine motor skills.  Once they are old enough to actually write in the card, it helps them to gain better handwriting & writing skills.  The educational benefits can be endless... you can teach them about how mail is processed through the mail system, you can teach them about math by using stamps, etc. 

Stronger Self Esteem
If children are sending out thank you cards, they are learning all of the things listed above.  I don't care if you're a child or an adult, if you are getting all of the benefits above, that will build your self esteem! 

So... why not encourage your child to send out thank you cards?! 

Tell me... who are you going to send a thank you card to today?

Read more of my Thank You Series here:
Simple & Creative Ways Your Children Can Say 'Thank You'
Ways to Make Writing Thank You Cards More Fun For Kids
Thank You Card Etiquette (For Kids)
People You Should Say 'Thank You' To More Often

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