Acts of Kindness and Simple Service Projects for Spring Break!

12 and Up, All Ages, Elementary, Middle School, Preschool

Acts of Kindness, Holiday Ideas, Service Projects for Kids

Cleaning Service Projects, Donate with Meaning, Free, Help Hospitals, In the Neighborhood, Round Up of Ideas, Under $10

By Sheila @ Pennies of Time
March 6, 2014

Wondering how you’ll entertain both your school age kids

& younger kids all together during Spring Break?

Afraid that 4 hours into the break you’ll hear:

MOM, I’m BORED!

Not willing to spend 50 bucks every morning and afternoon trying to entertain the crew?

Then, get them together helping others!

Whaaaaaa? Totally, do it. Do it! Let’s ask our kids to help others instead of running ourselves into a frenzy trying to entertain them. We’ve made it easy for you. This post has popular ideas on acts of kindness and easy service projects for kids gathered from many writers that have a passion for getting their kids to help others. Grab this list of acts of kindness and service projects and have fun helping someone with your kids. By the way, these are REAL ideas that kids can do. Not just some running list out of someone’s brain. All of these ideas have been done by kids, real kids. I’ve linked the ideas to posts to show you how those real kids have done it.

If you have kids that are older, put them in charge of planning the acts of kindness.

(If the weather is warm where you are for Spring Break, check out these fun summer service ideas!)

https://penniesoftime.com/fun-summer-service-ideas/

The “Little Things” Challenge Challenge your family to do the “Little Things” to be kind to others.

Hold the door open for others.
Let someone else go first.
Say hello and thank you to people you interact with that help you.
Don’t talk on your cell phone while you are out and about. Be present and teach your children to observe what is going on around and see chances to help others.
Smile at others.

It is Spring Time–so how about some spring cleaning INside and OUTside!

Cleaning the creek is, by far, one of the more favored service acts for my boys. Check out our newly updated list of tricks and best tools for kids to use when cleaning a creek.
Clean up litter. That’s an easy one, right?
Cleaning the church is a great way to involve the older and younger kids. We like to sneak in and clean areas of the church. Bonus: The kids always seem to act more reverent in church on the weeks we make the effort to clean it.
Clean up the toys in the house and donate them as suggested by Trust Me, I’m a Mom.

Crafts for a Cause Projects

Take those looming passions and skills and make rubber band bracelets for a good cause: The Rainbow Loom Project by Kid Stuff World.
Make get well cards and take them to the pharmacy to attach with their prescriptions suggests Barbara from The Corner on Character.
Re-purpose household objects and thank an amazing person at the same time–see how to do it at The House of Shine’s Shineworks.
Make paper flowers and deliver them to someone that needs some cheer or just needs a thank you!

Help Hospitals

Make busy books to donate to the local hospital’s emergency room. (crayons + coloring books = busy book)
Put together easy craft bags for your local hospital like Carly from Africa to America did with her young daughter.
Make Chemo Care Kit for an adult or put together a couple of Chemo Care Kits for Kids.
Hold a book drive for your local hospital. This is a great way to get your kids’ friends and the whole neighborhood in on the giving action.

In Your Neighborhood

Bring in trashcans. Totally easy one right there.
Give a couple of neighbors a “heart attack.” The boys enjoy doing this so much that we’ve been giving one away weekly for awhile.
Feed your neighbors’ pets while they are away as suggested by Neighborly Acts of Kindness: 5 Ways We Show Love to Our Neighbors from The Good Long Road.
Make cookie dough and deliver it!

Donate with Meaning

Donate books to your local library with your kids as suggested by Africa to America’s post on donating multicultural books to a library.
Collect spare change for a cause your family cares about like The Good Long Road did with small kids to help fight hunger. This gives the chance for your kids to talk to others about something that they care about helping. Talking with others, developing passion, and collecting for a good cause–slam dunk!
Hold a food drive in your neighborhood or a Very Hungry Caterpillar Virtual Food Drive to Help Very Hungry Kids like the kids did at The Good Long Road.

Keep Up the Reading! Reading books on kindness and service will do three things:

Show your children examples of kids helping others
Provide the perfect springboard to discuss kindness and service
Keep up those developing reading skills (ALL teachers want kids reading over Spring Break–I can hear them cheering!)

Here are the books that we love that talk about kindness, service, and compassion. All of books on the list linked above are ones that we read over and over, ones that the boys pull off the shelf and read in bed.