Emotional intelligence activity
Kindness Chain
Make a paper chain of kindness! For each kind act you do or see, add a colorful link. Watch your kindness chain grow throughout the week.
Materials and setup
- colored paper strips
- tape or stapler
- markers
- scissors
How this changes by age
Pre-K (ages 3–4)
Make a paper chain of kindness! For each kind act you do or see, add a colorful link. Watch your kindness chain grow throughout the week.
Steps
- Cut paper strips in different colors.
- Talk about what kindness means: 'Sharing, helping, using nice words, giving hugs.'
- When someone does something kind, write or draw it on a strip and add it to the chain.
- Start with 2-3 acts now: 'You shared your toy — that's kind! Let's add a link!'
- Hang the chain and add links throughout the week. How long can you make it?
Learning objectives
- Identify acts of kindness in everyday interactions
- Understand that kindness can be shown in many different ways
- Practice recognizing and celebrating kind behavior in themselves and others
Kindergarten (ages 5–6)
Create a kindness chain and take on daily kindness challenges! Write specific kind acts on each link and set goals for how many links to add each day.
Steps
- Make paper chain links with each one describing a kind act.
- Create a list of kindness challenges: hold a door, draw a picture for someone, say 3 nice things, help clean up without being asked.
- Each day, try to complete 2-3 kindness challenges and add links for each one.
- Write what you did and how it made the other person feel.
- At the end of the week, count your links and read through all the kind acts!
Learning objectives
- Proactively plan and perform acts of kindness
- Reflect on how kind acts affect both the giver and receiver
- Build a habit of daily intentional kindness
Early elementary (ages 6–8)
Launch a week-long Kindness Campaign! Plan different categories of kind acts (words, actions, gifts, time), track them in a journal, and write about how each one affected both you and the recipient.
Steps
- Create a Kindness Campaign plan with 4 categories: Kind Words, Kind Actions, Kind Gifts (handmade), and Kind Time (spending time with someone).
- Set a goal of at least 2 kind acts per category over the week (8 total minimum).
- For each act, write a journal entry: what you did, who it was for, how they reacted, how it made you feel.
- Add a decorated chain link for each completed act with the category color-coded.
- At the end of the week, write a reflection paragraph: Which category was easiest? Hardest? Most rewarding?
- Share your favorite kindness story with your family at dinner.
Learning objectives
- Categorize different types of kindness and practice each intentionally
- Reflect in writing on the impact of kind acts on self and others
- Set and track goals for prosocial behavior over a week
- Develop empathy through observing others' reactions to kindness
Upper elementary (ages 8–10)
Design and lead a Kindness Project for your household or neighborhood. Learn about the science behind kindness, plan a multi-day initiative, track what happened, and share what you noticed about kindness ripple effects.
Steps
- Learn: Why does kindness matter? Find 3 facts about how kindness affects the brain and relationships.
- Design a Kindness Project with a theme (e.g., 'Neighbor Appreciation Week' or 'Family Gratitude Challenge').
- Create a plan with daily activities, materials needed, and who will participate.
- Lead the project for 5 days, keeping a detailed log of activities and observations.
- Interview 2-3 participants about how the project made them feel.
- Create a poster or simple summary with your facts, project plan, results, and participant quotes.
- Share it with your family and discuss: How could this work in a bigger group someday?
Learning objectives
- Learn about the psychological and social benefits of kindness
- Plan, lead, and execute a multi-day community project
- Collect qualitative data through interviews and observation
- Analyze and share findings on prosocial behavior
Safety and evidence note
Read the full activity before beginning. An adult should supervise tools, heat, food, outdoor work, movement, and experiments as appropriate. Completion records that the activity was done; the child’s explanation, work sample, photo, or demonstration is stronger evidence of learning than a completion check alone.
Related emotional intelligence activities
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Anti-Bullying Champions
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Digital Citizenship
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