9 Best Kindness Crafts for Kids at Home or School

Kindness means being caring, helpful, and thoughtful toward others. Kindness crafts help kids understand this idea through creative, hands-on projects.

Kids are still learning how their words and actions affect others. That’s why teaching kindness early matters. Kindness crafts make these lessons easier to understand.

Instead of just talking about kindness, kids can create something they can see and use. They help kids learn kindness in a way that feels fun, meaningful, and easy to apply in everyday life.

What are Kindness Crafts?

Kindness crafts are hands-on activities that help kids learn what kindness looks like in real life. Each craft connects a simple art project with kind actions, words, or choices. They make learning kindness easy and engaging for kids.

Instead of only talking about kindness, kids create something that reminds them to be caring and thoughtful. This could mean making cards with kind messages, bracelets that stand for helping others, or jars filled with kind actions to practice.

Kindness Crafts Benefits

When children make kindness crafts for others, they start thinking about how their actions might make someone else feel. This is the beginning of empathy, which helps kids understand that their kindness affects the people around them.

Research shows that creative, art-based activities can help young children develop empathy. A 2021 study found that when kindergarten and first-grade children combined art activities with discussions about empathy, they showed improvements in empathic behavior [*]. By engaging in these hands-on projects, children begin to see how their actions can affect the emotions of those around them.

Building on this, another study showed that participatory arts activities increased children's willingness to help and be kind to others, including peers from different groups [*].

Kindness crafts give children ways to practice good behaviors like sharing, helping, and giving. By doing these activities often, kids develop habits of kindness that go beyond the craft table into their everyday life.

Creative activities also support emotional expression and social connection [*]. Making kindness-themed art gives children a safe way to share their feelings and learn words for positive emotions.

These activities provide a natural outlet for children to express emotions that they might not yet have the words to describe. This makes creative projects an especially valuable tool for young children who are still developing their emotional vocabulary.

Finally, kindness crafts turn abstract ideas into visible, concrete creations. When kids make something that represents a kind action, like a card or bracelet, they see how their effort can make someone else happy.

9 Best Kindness Crafts for Kids at Home or School

Let's explore nine kindness crafts that are perfect for children of various ages and skill levels. Each project includes everything you need to get started, from materials to step-by-step instructions.

1. Kindness Jar

A kindness jar is a simple way to collect and celebrate kind acts throughout the week or month. Kids can write down kind things they've done or seen, then read them together as a family or class to think about all the good things that happened.

Materials needed:

• Mason jar or any clear container with a lid
• Decorative materials (stickers, ribbon, paint, washi tape)
• Small pieces of paper or colorful sticky notes
• Markers or pens
• Optional: glitter, sequins, or foam shapes

Steps:

1. Clean and dry your jar completely so it's ready to decorate.
2. Decorate the outside of the jar with paint, stickers, ribbon, or other fun items to make it special.
3. Make a label that says "Kindness Jar" or "Acts of Kindness" and stick it on the front.
4. Cut paper into small strips (about 1x3 inches) or use sticky notes for easy writing.
5. Put the jar somewhere everyone can reach it easily.
6. Each time someone does something kind, have them write it down and put it in the jar.
7. Pick a regular time (every week or month) to open the jar together and read all the kind acts out loud to celebrate all the good things done.

Tip: The All About Kindness handout explains what kindness is and why it matters. Kids can reference this while writing their kindness notes for the jar.

2. Kindness Bracelets

Kindness bracelets are wearable reminders to be kind. Kids can make these for themselves or give them as gifts to friends, family, or classmates to spread kindness through handmade jewelry.

Materials needed:

• Elastic cord or embroidery floss
• Alphabet beads
• Colorful beads in different shapes and sizes
• Scissors
• Tape (to hold cord while working)

Steps:

1. Cut a piece of elastic cord or embroidery floss about 10-12 inches long, depending on wrist size.
2. Use alphabet beads to spell out kind words like "LOVE," "KIND," "CARE," "HOPE," or "FRIEND."
3. Add colorful beads before and after the word to make a pretty pattern.
4. Check the bracelet size by wrapping it around your wrist before tying. Make sure it fits comfortably.
5. Tie the two ends together with a strong double knot and make sure it's tight enough to hold.
6. Give the bracelet to someone special or wear it as a reminder to be kind.

3. Kindness Cards

Handmade kindness cards can make someone's day better. These cards can be given to family members, teachers, community helpers, or anyone who could use a smile and some encouragement.

Materials needed:

• Cardstock or construction paper
• Markers, crayons, or colored pencils
• Stickers and stamps
• Glue stick
• Fun items to decorate with (glitter, ribbon, buttons, tissue paper)
• Envelopes (optional)

Steps:

1. Fold a piece of cardstock or construction paper in half to make a card.
2. Think about who will get the card and what nice message you want to share.
3. Decorate the front of the card with drawings, stickers, stamps, or cut-out pictures.
4. Write a kind message inside, like "You are amazing," "Thank you for being you," or "Your smile makes my day better."
5. Add personal touches like drawings, more stickers, or your name on the inside.
6. Put the card in an envelope or give it as-is to someone who needs encouragement.

Tip: Writing a thank-you card is one of the gratitude exercises listed on the All About Gratitude handout. Use this resource as a reminder of the benefits of being thankful and how to build the habit.

4. Kindness Rocks

A kindness rock is a small rock that kids decorate with kind words, messages, or symbols. The goal is to spread positivity and remind others to be kind.

Kids usually paint simple phrases like “Be kind,” “You matter,” or draw hearts and smiley faces.

Materials needed:

• Smooth, flat rocks (collected outside or bought from craft stores)
• Acrylic paint or paint pens
• Paintbrushes in different sizes
• Pencil for drawing designs first
• Clear sealant spray (for outdoor use)
• Newspaper to protect your work surface

Steps:

1. Wash and dry the rocks completely to remove any dirt that could affect the paint.
2. Draw your design lightly in pencil if you want to plan before painting.
3. Optional: Paint the rock with a base coat and let it dry completely before adding details.
4. Add kind words or phrases like "You matter," "Smile," "Be brave," or "You are loved," using paint or paint pens.
5. Decorate around the words with hearts, flowers, rainbows, or other cheerful designs.
6. Let the paint dry completely, which usually takes 1-2 hours, depending on how thick the paint is.
7. Spray with clear sealant if the rocks will be placed outside to protect them from rain and weather.
8. Once finished, the rocks can be placed in gardens, playgrounds, classrooms, or shared with friends and neighbors.

5. Kindness Crown

A kindness crown is a paper crown that helps kids learn and celebrate kind behavior. Each part of the crown highlights kind actions, words, or choices. Each time they do something kind, they can add a new decoration to their crown to create a wearable reminder of their good actions.

When they wear the crown, it serves as a reminder to act with care and respect toward others.

Materials needed:

• Construction paper or cardstock strips (2-3 inches wide)
• Tape
• Markers and crayons
• Stickers, sequins, and glitter
• Small cut-out shapes (hearts, stars, flowers)
• Glue

Steps:

1. Measure a strip of construction paper that will fit around the head. Add an extra inch for overlap.
2. Cut the strip and make pointed crown peaks along the top edge, or leave it flat for a simpler design.
3. Write "Kindness Crown" across the front.
4. Decorate the crown base with markers, stickers, and other fun items.
5. Add a small decoration (sticker, drawn heart, or cut-out shape) to the crown each time a kindness act is done.
6. Connect the two ends with tape.
7. Wear the crown during kindness activities or special times to celebrate being kind.

6. Kindness Flower

A kindness flower is a simple paper craft that helps kids learn and practice kind actions. Each part of the flower represents a way to show kindness.

Kids usually write kind words or actions on the petals, such as “helping,” “sharing,” or “using kind words.” The center of the flower often includes a message like “Kindness grows here.”

Materials needed:

• Construction paper in different colors
• Scissors
• Glue or tape
• Markers
• Green pipe cleaners or paper strips for stems
• Optional: Craft sticks, small flower pots, foam

Steps:

1. Cut out a circular center for your flower from yellow or orange paper (about 2-3 inches across).
2. Cut out five to eight petal shapes from colorful paper, each about 3-4 inches long.
3. Write one act of kindness on each petal, like “share”, “help”, “listen”, “smile”, “thank”, or “compliment”.
4. Glue or tape the petals around the back edge of the center circle to make a flower shape.
5. Attach a green pipe cleaner or paper strip to the back as a stem.
6. Add leaves cut from green paper if you want to complete the flower look.
7. Display the flower where everyone can see it, or make multiple flowers to create a kindness garden display.

Tip: Place the kindness flower next to a “Choose Kindness” poster so kids see both a visual reminder and a hands-on reflection of kindness. When kids “water” kindness through what they say and do, kindness grows stronger in themselves and in others. It’s a gentle way to show that kindness is something you practice and nurture every day, not just something you talk about.

7. Kindness Bingo

A kindness bingo is a fun activity that helps kids practice kind actions throughout the day or week.

Instead of numbers, each bingo square shows a kind action, such as helping a friend, sharing, using kind words, or saying thank you. Kids complete a square each time they do one of the actions.

Materials needed:

• Blank bingo card (5x5 grid) printed or drawn
• Markers or crayons
• Stickers or small objects for marking completed squares
• Ruler for drawing straight lines
• List of kind acts that fit your child's age

Steps:

1. Make or print a blank 5x5 bingo grid on paper or cardstock.
2. Write “Kindness Bingo” across the top in colorful letters.
3. Fill each square with different acts of kindness, like “hold the door for someone,” “Give a compliment,” “Help with chores,” or “Share a toy.”
4. Make the center square a “Free” space.
5. Decorate the border with stickers or drawings.
6. Throughout the week, mark off squares with stickers or drawings as you complete each kind act.
7. Celebrate when you complete a row, column, diagonal, or the whole card.
8. Make new cards with different kindness challenges to keep the activity fresh and fun.

8. Kindness Cootie Catchers

Kindness cootie catchers (also called fortune tellers) are interactive paper-folding crafts that reveal kind actions or nice messages. Kids open and close the paper and follow the prompt they land on.

Materials needed:

• Square paper (8.5 x 8.5 inches) or origami paper
• Markers or colored pencils
• Ruler (optional, for better folding)
• List of kind acts and nice messages

Steps:

1. Start with a square piece of paper.
2. Fold the paper diagonally both ways to make an X crease, then unfold.
3. Fold all four corners to meet at the center point to make a smaller square.
4. Flip the paper over and fold all four corners to the center again.
5. Fold the square in half both ways to make crease lines, then unfold.
6. Write numbers 1-8 on the eight triangle flaps you can see.
7. Open each flap and write a kind act underneath, like “Give someone a hug,” “Say something nice,” or “Help without being asked.”
8. Decorate the four outer squares with colors or patterns and label them with color names or words.
9. Put your thumbs and fingers into the pockets on the back and play by having someone choose a color, a number, and then another number to reveal their kindness challenge.

9. Kindness Spinner

A kindness spinner is a fun wheel that randomly picks acts of kindness for children to do. This game of chance makes choosing kind actions exciting and helps kids think of kindness as an adventure rather than a chore.

Materials needed:

• Paper plate or cardboard circle
• Brass fastener or paper clip
• Cardboard arrow or popsicle stick
• Markers in different colors
• Ruler
• Scissors

Steps:

1. Divide your paper plate or cardboard circle into 6-8 equal wedge sections using a ruler and marker.
2. Write or draw a different act of kindness in each section, like "Tell a joke to make someone laugh," "Offer to help with a task," "Give a real compliment," or "Include someone new."
3. Color each section with a different color to make the spinner easy to read.
4. Cut an arrow shape from cardboard or use a popsicle stick as your spinner pointer.
5. Decorate the arrow with markers to make it stand out.
6. Poke a small hole through the center of the plate and the base of the arrow.
7. Connect the arrow to the center of the spinner using a brass fastener. Make sure it's loose enough to spin freely.
8. Spin the arrow and do the act of kindness it lands on, or use it every day as a kindness challenge picker.

The Bottom Line

Kindness crafts give children a fun way to learn about caring for others while being creative.

These nine projects provide hands-on chances for kids to practice kindness, whether they're making bracelets for friends or playing kindness bingo at home or school. What makes these crafts special isn't just what kids make, but the talks and thoughts they spark about how we treat others.

By making kindness real through creative projects, we help children understand that caring isn't just a feeling, it's something they can do every day.

Looking for more ways to teach kindness? Check out our kindness worksheets that pair perfectly with these crafts, explore additional kindness activities for kids to keep the learning going, or discover our recommended children's books about kindness to reinforce these important lessons through stories.

References:

• Morizio LJ, Cook AL, Troeger R, Whitehouse A. Creating Compassion: Using Art for Empathy Learning with Urban Youth. Contemp Sch Psychol. 2022;26(4):435-447. doi: 10.1007/s40688-020-00346-1. Epub 2021 Jan 14. PMID: 33469473; PMCID: PMC7808116.
• Julie Van de Vyver, Dominic Abrams, Lauren Spinner, Joseph Pelletier, Shazza Y. Ali, Ioanna Kapantai, Participatory arts interventions promote interpersonal and intergroup prosocial intentions in middle childhood, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, Volume 65, 2019, 101069, ISSN 0193-3973, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2019.101069.
• Smith, Sharon. (2024). Relationship between Artistic Expression and Mental Well-being. International Journal of Humanity and Social Sciences. 2. 11-22. 10.47941/ijhss.1880.