By Mercedes Leguizamon
If your children usually have a hard time being nice to others, use Do Something Nice Day (Oct. 5) to teach your child about the benefits of kindness and show them how they can celebrate the spirit of the day!
Besides well-known emotional benefits, doing something nice has many physical benefits as well, such as decreasing stress and increasing life expectancy. Doing something nice promotes good mental health and motivates children to do nice things again. When a child does a good deed for those around him, the emotional warmth releases oxytocin. This hormone, according to a study in the journal Public Library of Science ONE, causes increased generosity. Help your child find joy in being kind by helping them complete any (or all!) of the following tasks this Oct. 5!
- Tape change to a parking meter.
- Hold the door for someone.
- Give a candy bar to a bus driver.
- Set the table for dinner.
- Leave a nice letter in a library book.
- Feed the birds.
- Let someone go ahead of you in line.
- Donate outgrown clothes.
- Bring flowers to your teacher.
- Smile at everyone you see.
Every day should be filled with kindness and generosity, but Do Something Nice Day is a good chance to tell your children why it is important to be nice and teach them different ways to brighten the day of those around them.