226Parenting.com

for Preschoolers

BeingThankful

NOVEMBER 2017

DINNERTIME STORIES

PAGE 8

DRIVE-TIME GAMES

PAGES 6-7

BEDTIME QUESTIONS

PAGE 9

WEEKLY BIBLE STORY & MEMORY VERSE

PAGE 10

MORNING PRAYERS

PAGES 5

INTRODUCTIONPAGES 3-4for Preschoolers

BeingThankful

3

for Preschoolers

BeingThankful

Dr. Josh + Christi

A few years ago, when our son Landon was in the three-year-old preschool class, he came home with brown construction paper cut into the shape of feathers and a note for Christi and me. We were to talk with Landon about what he was thankful for and then write them on the respective feathers. I’m grateful the school was teaching him. When we sat down with Landon to learn from him what he was thankful for, he didn’t even know what it meant to be “thankful.”

#parentingfail

I know he was only three years old at the time, but it was a big lesson for Christi and me. Teaching our kids to give thanks is important, but how can we get gratitude to stick over time? Once again, the focus is on who we are becoming—the Way of the Parent. In other words, we teach our kids to be thankful by being thankful ourselves.

With Thanksgiving upon us, let’s use this month’s mile marker—being thankful—to apply it to our own lives as parents. One of our favorite passages is Philippians 4:5-9. Paul writes that when we’re anxious, we are to make our requests known to God “with thanksgiving.” In other words, every prayer request should begin “with thanksgiving.” But why?

Leading our prayers in thanksgiving (Col. 4:2) is an act of faith. What if God doesn’t answer our prayer at all? Or what if the timing of our request is sooner than God sees fit for our request to be answered? When we begin our prayers with thanksgiving, we are telling God (1) that we believe He is good, and (2) that we believe His answer—or non-answer—to our prayer is good. Practice aloud with your kids, thanking God ahead of time because you trust in His good control of your lives.

4

for Preschoolers

BeingThankful

FOR MOM Speaking of being thankful in front of our kids, let’s put ourselves in our child’s shoes for a moment. If we were to ask our kids whether the words “grumbler” or “encourager” better described us, what would they say? Throughout any given day, would they hear more complaints or compliments coming from our mouths?

Are we criticizing our husbands? Gossiping about our neighbors? Complaining about the upcoming holidays? Faultfinding toward our kids? I (Christi) think we often do this without even realizing our kids are listening. I know I do.

But what if we made just one small tweak in how we think? Scientific research1 shows we can live a happier life—catch this—by asking one key question of ourselves: “What am I grateful for?”

Did you know being grateful has the same effect on the brain as the antidepressant Wellbutrin?

Know what Prozac does? It increases serotonin. So does gratitude.

This month, especially when you’re ready to complain, ask and answer for yourself, “What am I grateful for?” It actually makes you happier.

FOR DAD Dads, I (Josh) want to encourage you this month to begin thinking about one new tradition you’d love to begin for your family at Thanksgiving. Think about the very name of the holiday itself: “Thanks” and “Giving.” What new tradition this year could you model for your kids by “giving” of yourselves to another out of “thanks” for what God has done for you? Maybe it’s donating a turkey to a homeless shelter, or inviting a neighbor or single mother over to your home for Thanksgiving dinner. Take the lead in modeling for your kids the idea of “giving from thanks” by setting up a new tradition of serving others.

FOR COUPLES I remember one night preparing dinner with our kids in earshot. Rather than thanking Christi for getting the sheets washed and beds made for my parents to visit for Thanksgiving, I started to nitpick about how messy the kitchen was. In turn, instead of thanking me for working hard for our family, she complained that I got home ten minutes later than I said I was going to.

If you’re as human as we are, you can tell how the rest of the evening was set to unfold. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Too often, when life gets busy—much like the upcoming holidays—it’s easy to go into business and survival mode with our spouses. We want to encourage you this month not to take each other for granted but instead to find one way each day throughout the month of November to show your spouse how grateful you are for him/her. Use notes, text messages, or even an after-the-kids-are-down massage. Get creative, have fun with it, and let the romance take over the busyness.

For preschoolers, repetition is key. Choose one of the prayers to pray throughout each week of the month or choose one prayer to pray the

entire month. Tailor them for your children to remember.

MORNING PRAYERSfor Preschoolers

BEING THANKFUL

01 02Father, today I come to You and

thank You for . (Have your kids fill in the blank with

what they are grateful for today. Practice this prayer each day of November. Use this prayer with your kids each day to thank God

for something different.)

Dear Lord, thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus, to save me and give me

new life. (John 3:16)

03 04

I exalt You, my God the King, and bless Your name

forever and ever. I will bless You everyday. I will exalt

Your name forever and ever. (Ps. 145:1)

Thank you, O Lord, that You watch over me. Help me to obey You, honor my mom and dad, and forgive

me when I sin.

5

DRIVE-TIME GAMES for Preschoolers

BEING THANKFUL

6

I Spy What God Created

Each month we provide a list of games related to that month’s mile-marker. Simply choose the ones you enjoy as a family and play them often.

This is the classic game of “I Spy” but with a twist. While driving, have your kids take turns spying something that God created. Since God created everything, the game isn’t hard. Your kids can really choose anything. But what makes this game fun is to discover the gratitude and awe of God’s creativity. So whenever somebody spies something, they name it aloud, rather than having someone guess it. Instead of guessing what the person spies, the other people in the car will name why they are grateful God created what the person spies.

For example, “I spy with my little eye a horse.” Take turns having others in the car say, “I’m grateful God created a horse because they helped farmers plow their fields.” Somebody else might say, “I’m grateful God created a horse because they are fun to ride.”

The next person says, “I spy with my little eye a house.” Though God didn’t build the house, He created the materials and worked through the people who built it. In this way, you can see how anything really is game here. Someone says, “I’m grateful God created houses so we don’t get wet when it rains.”

The Legend of SquantoWe highly recommend the Focus on the Family The Legend of Squanto found in the recommend resources below. It’s a CD theater series that brings the Thanksgiving story to life and that your kids can listen to during drive time as well.

7

DRIVE-TIME GAMES for Preschoolers

BEING THANKFUL

Use drive time as an opportunity to thank God as a family for everything He has or is blessing you with. Allow your kids to pray aloud if they feel comfortable doing so. If not, simply talk about what they would like to thank God for and then pray aloud for those things. The best part about this prayer is that it allows the opportunity to model a prayer of thanks to God for unique blessings your kids may not normally recognize.

Drive-Time Prayer

Thanksgiving Alphabet

Game

Just like the alphabet game you normally would play in the car, have your kids use the alphabet to take turns naming things they are grateful for. For instance, “I am thankful for the airplanes because they brought us to Grammy’s house.” “I am thankful for bath time because it’s so fun and I get clean.”

If your children have trouble with some of the letters, make suggestions for them to choose from. However, let them come up with their answer.

7

What is one of your most memorable Thanksgiving moments as a child? Tell your children tonight about the traditions and memories you have of Thanksgiving growing up.

Everyone go around the table and name one thing that happened today that you are grateful for.

Go around the table and tell each child (and your spouse) about one thing about them (something they do for you, a character trait they have, etc.) you are grateful for.

The holidays are just around the corner. Describe what you are most grateful for during the holiday season.

Tell your children about lessons their grandparents (your parents) taught you that you are grateful for today.

Research and tell the original story of the first American Thanksgiving to your children. There are a number of resources online, or you can also check out some of the resources in the recommend reading list below. Again, we highly recommend the Focus on the Family The Legend of Squanto because it’s a CD theater series that brings the story to life and that your kids can listen to during drive time as well.

What did you love most about growing up as a kid? Share with your children moments that defined who you are. Did you share a room with your siblings? Was it playing a sport, instrument, or board games as a family? Was it Sunday afternoons at Grandma’s? Describe specific childhood moments you are grateful for and that shaped you today.

Tell your kids about three people you said “thank you” to this week. What did they do for you? How did you celebrate them?

Ahead of dinner one evening, have everyone list the top five things they are thankful for. Go around the table and present your lists to one another, talking about why you’re grateful for each one. When you’re finished, talk about ways you can, figuratively speaking, give glory to God with a loud voice for all He’s doing in your lives.

Tell your children one of the funniest stories you have about your life that they may not know. Tell funny stories together around the dinnertime tonight.

01

0302

04

06

08

10

05

07

09

DINNERTIME STORIES for Preschoolers

BEING THANKFUL

8

What do you want to thank God for tonight? oneWhat do you love most about Thanksgiving? twoTell me the funniest story you know. threeIs there anything that scared you (or add another negative emotion like angry, sad, jealous, or embarrassed) today? Tell me about that. What is one thing you can be thankful for today even though this happened (teaching our kids the value of Colossians 4:2)? For instance, did a friend stand up for you? Did your teacher praise your hard work?

four

What questions do you have about the Thanksgiving holiday? fiveWhat is one way you can show your brother(s)/sister(s) how grateful you are for them? How can you do that tomorrow? If you only have one child, ask how your son/daughter can show a friend or relative how grateful they are for them.

six

When I take you on our next date, just the two of us, what is it that you want to do together? seven

What is one way you can give glory to God with a loud voice (at school, with your friends, at church, on the playground, with your sibling(s), with your mom and dad)?

eight

When did you feel most proud of yourself today?nineWhat is one thing we can do as a family after school, or on the weekend, that would brighten your day? What is one thing we could do for someone else that would brighten his/her day this holiday season? How can we do that together?

ten

BEDTIME QUESTIONS for Preschoolers

BEING THANKFUL

9

WEEKLY BIBLE STORY & MEMORY VERSEfor Preschoolers

BEING THANKFUL

WEEK 1 Ten Men Healed;

One Is Thankful LUKE 17:11-19

Memory verse: “But one of them, seeing that he was healed, returned and, with a loud voice, gave glory to God.”

– Luke 17:15, CSB

WEEK 2 Paul’s Thankful Heart

for His FriendsEPHESIANS 1:15-19

Memory verse: “I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers.”

– Ephesians 1:16, CSB

Ages 4-8The Berenstain Bears

Thanksgiving Blessings

Ages 8-12The Legend of Squanto

Paul McCusker, Focus on the Family Radio Theatre

2 CDs

Ages 4-8Squanto and the Miracle

of Thanksgiving Eric Metaxas

Hardback or eBook

Ages 7-12Pilgrim Boy

Ages 9-12Voyage to Freedom David Gay

Ages 9-12The Light and the Glory for Children

Peter Marshall & David Manuel

Recommended Resources