Wondering how to encourage your toddlers and preschoolers to be nice and grow up to be kind adults? Start from young age with our list of 25 simple random acts of kindness for toddlers and preschoolers! On this page you can download and print out the poster we prepared and here you can also find ideas how to incorporate kindess into their daily routine.

We have been looking around for ways to encourage our toddler to be nicer to friends and family members but all lists sharing ideas for random acts of kindness for kids were a bit too elaborate and can’t be easily accomplished by younger children like toddlers and preschoolers. For this reason, we compiled a list of 25 very simple ideas for random acts of kindness for our toddlers and preschoolers.
How to Encourage Toddlers and Preschoolers to Be Nice to Others
Like with everything else when it comes to young children, playing nice and being kind starts with people in their environment – parents, grandparents and other care takers. Teaching by example is one of the most effective ways to encourage young children such as toddlers and preschoolers to be kind to their friends and siblings. We should always be aware of our own behaviour towards our children since they copy what they observe, including our words.
List of 25 Simple Random Acts of Kindness for Toddlers and Preschoolers
- Hug your sibling. – You can switch sibling with a friend, cousin, etc.
- Ask a friend to pick a game to play. – This will encourage a child to except other child’s lead in choosing a game
- Blow bubbles for younger children. – All children have fun catching bubbles! Aboundace of laughter to follow!
- Pick toys without being asked. – Adding simple chores to a list is always a good idea! Even toddlers can do simple chores like picking toys or putting away books. You can also encourage them to do their sibling’s chore.
- Say something nice to a friend. – Complimenting with sincerity is always appreciated by friends and people close to us.
- Draw a picture for a teacher. – They can also draw a picture for mom, dad, grandpa or grandma!
- Make paper hearts and leave them in library books. – Our toddler made super simple paper heart smily emojis and left them in our local library. It’s an easy way to make feature readers smile!
- Say thanks. – This is where teaching by example comes first. Whenever you interact with toddlers and preschoolers always use Thank you! and Please! It might seam like unimporant but since kids copy your behaviour, repeating these words will root results.
- Pick 3 toys to donate to kindergarten. – Over years, it became our routine to pick few toys to donate to local kindergarten. By doing this, we encourage our children to share with others.
- Make a friend smile. – Tell a joke! Tickle them! Share a toy with them they said they wanted to play with. There are so many ways to make a friend smile!
- Hide treasure on the playground. – Aimed for a group of kids to bond through play.
- Make a new friend. – My children always come with a stories about how they met a new friend when we visit playground. Most children are open and easily make friends. Some might need a bit of encouragement from adults.
- Pick 3 books to donate to library. – You can change the number and donate more. We choose number 3 because children can be a bit resistant to sharing their favorite toys and books. 3 is small enough number to not get their defence go up.
- Set a table for dinner. – Another little chore to let them participate in family obligations and make them feel accomplished through attribution.
- Bring flowers to grandma. – Not only on birthday! And, change grandma to teacher or mom or aunt! They all love receiving flowers!
- Say hallo to everyone you see. – We grow up in small town where everyone knew everyone so it was natural for us to greet every single person we encounter on the street. Nowdays, this simple act of politeness has been negolected and forgotten. We can bring it back!
- Invite a friend for a play date. – Let your child plan a whole play date, from games to play to snacks to eat!
- Share a toy with a friend. – Invite them to play with your toy together.
- Call grandparents and ask about their day. – They will love it!
- Sing a song. – There is nothing better to make a day amazing than a song! If you see someone feeling sad, it’s song time!
- Pick 3 pieces of clothing to donate to charity. – Overgrown clothes are needed by other kids! Don’t throw them, donate them.
- Give high five. – It’s a simple way to share a joy and happiness over someone’s achievement!
- Share a candy with a friend. – Sweets taste even better when shared with friends!
- Play with someone new. – Encourage a toddler to expand their circle of friends by interacting with someone new.
- Smile! And people will smile back!

Introduce Random Act of Kindness Project Through Play!
Young children, such as toddlers and preschoolers, will embrace new ideas easier and faster if you introduce them through playing. You can share Random Acts of Kindness project in several ways:
- create a Kindness activity jar – You can expand our list of 25 RAKs to hundred or even more if you change recepients. Add people close to your child – mom, dad, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, grandma, grandpa, cousin, teacher, friend, etc.
- invite Kindness Elves. My children adore them! We usually bring them out during Christmas season to share the joy of giving!
- create a Kindness calendar to celebrate Random Acts of Kindness Day (February 17th) or World Kindness Day (November 13th)

Read about Kindness to Your Child
Here are few of our favorite books about kindness for kids under 4 years old:

Manners don’t come naturally to everyone! But did you know that elephants are known for their impeccable etiquette? It’s true! This hilarious guide to good manners offers many fun teaching moments for kids and their parents—it covers all the basics for the preschool set, from saying “please” and “thank you” to sharing and being kind to others. Find the book here: United States | Canada | United Kingdom

This joyful board book shows various children as they extend kindness in all kinds of situations: on the playground, at lunchtime, on a bike path, and on a neighborhood street. This sweet read-aloud shows the way kindness helps build friendship and community. Find the book here: United States | Canada | United Kingdom

A little girl thinks about the way her family, her friends, and other children share with her and how happy she feels when this happens. Colorful scenes in a variety of settings help little ones see that everyone has “plenty to share.” Find the book here: United States | Canada | United Kingdom
What to Read Next?
- Encourage Sharing Among Siblings
- Tips for Raising an Independent Toddler
- What to Do When Toddler Hits or Bites
- Ways to Improve Communication Between Toddlers and Parents

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