6 Ways to Model Gratitude in Tough Times

6 Ways to Practice Gratitude in Your Everyday Life

If you want to reap the benefits of living a life of gratitude, then you are going to have to practice the mindset daily. This may mean changing your thought habits on a massive scale and on a daily basis. Adding homeschooling to the mix can make it even more of a challenge. Teaching our kids to have gratitude in tough times is vital to a positive homeschool mindset.

It can all seem overwhelming and just plain hard which is why we have found 6 tips for helping you practice daily gratitude. Use these six tips to model gratitude in your homeschool and family life.

You will also want to grab the fun Gratitude Photo Scavenger Hunt Challenge at the end of this post.

 

Begin Each Morning with Gratitude

Begin each day with a few minutes focused on reflecting on what you have to be grateful for. Take some time to do this for yourself. Also, do it as a family during your regular time to meet together. This could be during your morning basket time, or as part of a meal. 

Whether you choose to write a daily gratitude journal, or simply engage in some targeting reflecting over your morning coffee, targeting your thoughts is a great way to start your morning. When your morning begins with positivity, it is much easier to retain that focus throughout the day.

Surround Yourself with People You Love

Even when they drive us a little crazy, the people we love are some of the biggest reasons we have to be grateful. When we spend time with these people enjoying their company and doing something fun together, feeling grateful for them comes effortlessly. This is one of the many reasons that surrounding yourself with the people you love is a good move for your mental health. As a homeschool mom, don’t forget to look beyond your immediate family. Plan time with friends that rejuvenate and refresh your soul. You will be so thankful you did. Don’t forget to show them your gratitude during tough times too! 

Differentiate Your Wants and Your Needs

There are times when our inability to discern that something is a want and not a need gets in the way of feeling gratitude. This is especially true when our wants are not something we can easily achieve. This is where evaluating wants and needs can significantly help with gratitude levels. Teaching kids this can be so hard, but the lessons of gratitude are bountiful.

Radiate Gratitude

Gratitude does not have to be a private feeling or thought. On the contrary, when you make it a point to express your gratitude during tough times out loud to others, you are helping to internalize those feelings of gratitude. The feelings that you give out are also the type of feelings that you tend to receive in return. The cycle helps to keep your brain focused on the positive. 

Modeling an attitude of gratitude in everyday life is one of the best ways to teach kids the power of a thankful heart. 

Shift Negative Thoughts to Positive Ones

This is a tough one sometimes… but again modeling gratitude teaches rich lessons about life and that a positive mindset can even be contagious. When you catch yourself having a negative thought, try to shift the negative thought into a more positive thought. There are going to be days when things seem bad. There may even be days where you feel like the world is out to get you. During these days, it may be easy to spiral back into negativity. 

Learning to shift your days of negativity to positivity is one of the hardest parts of learning to be grateful. However, using the difficult moments to practice this shift can be helpful. Focus on everything that you do have to be grateful for. Prayer and thanksgiving are the cornerstones of gratitude on the toughest of days.

Look for Positives in the Situations You Find Yourself in

Even though there are a lot of times when things will not quite go the way you wish for them to, there are always things to be grateful for. When you are faced with a challenge, think about the ways that the challenge can be good for you in the long run. This might be difficult at first, but over time, it can help a great deal.

For example, a great deal of personal growth happens during these days. Finding the positive in any situation is totally possible. Although it may take some practice, you will see how this helps you to overcome major setbacks and bounce back so much more quickly than ever before.

There are always going to be tough days. Modeling a positive attitude, with honesty about the difficulties is the best way to teach those around us the power of a grateful heart.

Fun Ways Homeschoolers Can Express Gratitude in Tough Times

Practicing gratitude in your daily life is an extremely rewarding challenge that can change your world for the better. By following these six daily tips, you can help yourself to overcome the challenges that might stand in your way when practicing daily gratitude.

To help you guide your family toward an attitude of gratitude, grab these resources today.

• FREE Thanksgiving Photo Scavenger Hunt
• FREE Printable Journal Writing Prompts on Gratitude
• Free Printable Thank You Cards to Help Your Kids Show Gratitude
• FREE Downloadable Gratitude Bible Study for Kids
• FREE Gratitude Journal Printable