“The best portion of a good man’s life is his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and of love.”

                                    ~William Wordsworth

“Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you.”

                                           ~Princess Diana

Tactics:
THE GOLDEN RULE is what we were all taught in kindergarten, To treat others as you would like to be treated is one of most import life lessons we teach our children. Create an empathetic mindset in your child by saying to him/her, “How would you feel if ______ had said that to you? Had done that to you?; you would be so sad, so hurt; that is how your friend ______ is feeling right now.”

Let your child help you with little tasks during your day. Let he/she help set the table, carry a light grocery bag into the home, cover you with a throw when you are chilly, or make you “breakfast in bed”. It gives a child a sense of worth and his/her importance in the family. It helps them learn tangible acts of kindness. Praise your child’s helpfulness. By acknowledging their kind-hearted efforts, you encourage them to do thoughtful acts more often.

Let your child choose to be kind. Suggest to her/him, “Would you like to see if you could help your baby sister feel better; I’ll be there in a minute but it would help me right now.”

“Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children.” Charles R. Swindoll

If your child has witnessed you act in an unkind manner, take ownership of your mistake. If you have snapped at your child, say, “I am sorry, I didn’t do that right, ….” It shows humility and respect.

Finally, it comes down to your examples of kindness. These are set by the small acts of thoughtful consideration that your children witness by you every day. When you are driving let them see you letting other drivers cut in front of you. Let them witness your kind efforts to help an elderly person, or other people in need. Let them witness your consideration to the grocery check-out person, the toll booth operator, and the sales clerk.