There’s no better time to teach kids about kindness and caring than Valentine’s Day. Understanding empathy may be a tricky concept for toddlers and younger kids, but you can start by laying the groundwork and talking about the people they care about the most and why it’s important to show gratitude for them.
Valentine Ink Drop Heart
This Valentine kindness project is very simple, but it’s about the meaning behind it and the springboard it creates to talk about love. As you work together, talk about your family members, what they mean to you, and why you love them.
Besides learning about love and kindness, this is an excellent project for young kids to work on fine motor skills and have some fun making a mess.
What You’ll Need:
- Lightweight cardboard or construction paper
- Paint paper
- Marker/ Pen
- Liquid watercolor
- A toothbrush
- Comb
- Scissors
- Draw and cut out different size hearts from the cardboard or construction paper.
- Place the hearts in any pattern on top of the paint paper.
- Splatter the liquid watercolor using the toothbrush and comb until the whole paper is covered. You can mix multiple colors.
- Let the paint dry.
- Remove the cutout hearts from the paint paper.
- Inside the blank hearts that remain write the names of people your little one is grateful for, or write in words that represent feelings related to empathy and kindness.
Hang the finished work up where your kiddo can see it and be reminded of the words and their meanings. It can also be a great homemade Valentine card.
