One of the most important gifts that you can give your children is to teach them about empathy and kindness. Charitable acts can be integrated into holiday gift giving, and will help pass on these values to the next generation. The following are 5 ideas to do this: 1) volunteer together with your child to provide charitable labor, 2) collect gently used and new toys, 3) contribute to disaster relief, 4) put together care packages, and 5) integrate volunteer activities into your vacation plans.

Key Takeaways:

• Giving the gift of compassion this holiday season is going to do more for kids in the long run.
• helping others has been proven to make people happier. So by doing good for others, you actually do good for you too.
• There are many ways for kids to get involved these days. This means all the more opportunity to better shape our kids into becoming accepting and responsible adults.

“No matter how much your kid begs for that video game or iPhone or doll, giving the gift of compassion — of using any power or privilege they have for good and to help others — will go eons further in equipping them to become upstanding adults.”

Read more: http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/1137127/gifts-that-teach-kids-compassion