In November 2013, I came up with the idea for the Kindness Elves, a sweet-natured alternative to the "naughty elf" tradition, with a positive message of emphasising kindness, sharing and gratitude within our children! I couldn't wait to get started and my kids LOVED  them! I shared the idea and it was incredibly popular, with some wonderful feedback received from around the world.

Fast-forward to now and The Kindness Elves™ have been on a whirlwind journey! The simple yet powerful idea of spreading kindness amongst kids has been incredibly popular and readers have been asking us to sell our own elves and set up shop! So here we are, with some fantastically fun sets to choose from with different coloured clothes and two wood tones, and an absolutely adorable house with a working mail box. Incidentally, the elf house was designed by a real architect - fun fact! 

The Kindness Elves™ arrive in our home and leave little notes for the kids to find and read (or have read to them if younger.) 

They love looking out for kindness in the children and often make a note of it when they see it happening!

They also suggest lots of kind activities that they can do together with the children to show everyone around us that we care for them. Many are simple, everyday gestures such as smiling at everyone we see, saying please and thank you, holding the door open and playing together without squabbles.

There are plenty of ideas for celebrating and thanking those in our local community who serve us, such as postal workers, medical staff, fire fighters, police officers, teachers, librarians and more. There are also grander gestures of good will, such as filling a box with unwanted books to donate to the doctor’s waiting room, taking tins of food to the local food bank or choosing a child to sponsor in a less fortunate situation than our own.

The idea is to keep it simple to suit your own family or class and situation that you are in. It may be that you have elderly relatives living with you or nearby. These may become the focus of the kind deeds. Personalise and tailor to suit your own family or class, and follow the children's lead; they generally have the BEST ideas!

Of course, kindness is not just for Christmas and the Kindness Elves™ visit at various points throughout the year! They can even stay year-around if they are much loved. I love the positive impact our little friends are having and the open-ended way that the tradition can be tailored to each family or school setting. 

Kindness and building others up through positive language and thoughtful deeds is an incredibly powerful thing! Together we can start a kindness revolution, one smile at a time. Will you join us?!

Want to read more that I have written? I am also the owner and writer over at The Imagination Tree™, a blog packed full of creative ideas for learning through play for babies to school aged kids. Come and visit!

Anna x