The 6 Dimensions: Spiritual Foundation

Qualities To Teach

Nurturing the health and well being of a child’s inner spirit is an important element in supporting the development of the “Whole Child.”The list of “Qualities to Teach and Nurture in Children” has been developed to give parents, childcare providers, and others who care for children a place to start in nurturing the inner spirit of their child. This is not an exhaustive list of concepts, but rather a starting point for positively influencing the development of a child’s spirit.

It is hoped that this list will ignite a spark within you to add qualities of your own to the list and to identify new opportunities for you to nurture these qualities in the children in your care.

Qualities/Word List

  • Affection
  • Awareness
  • Awe
  • Beauty
  • Caring
  • Celebration
  • Comfort
  • Commitment
  • Compassion
  • Confidence
  • Connections
  • Consequences
  • Conservation
  • Cooperation
  • Courage
  • Creativity
  • Curiosity
  • Cycles
  • Delight
  • Empathy
  • Empowerment
  • Fairness
  • Family
  • Friendship
  • Generosity
  • Gentleness
  • Goodness
  • Gratitude
  • Helpfulness
  • Home
  • Hope
  • Humor
  • Imagination
  • Independence
  • Joy
  • Kindness
  • Love
  • Nurture
  • Openness
  • Order
  • Patience
  • Peace
  • Positive
  • Quiet
  • Relationship
  • Respect
  • Responsibility
  • Reverence
  • Serenity
  • Sharing
  • Trust
  • Wholeness
  • Wonder
  • Worship

Spirit-TeachableOccasions to teach these qualities and nurture your child’s spirit:

  • Dinner table discussions
  • Nature walks
  • Discipline and/or behavior alternatives (focus on the positive alternative to a child’s negative behavior; explain the benefits of the positive alternative)
  • Teachable Moments
    • When children ask questions
    • Behavior incidents
    • Incidents of sibling rivalry
    • When watching TV together
    • Occasions of grief (loss of pet, friend moved away, etc.
  • Spirit-and-NatureIntegrated into classroom activities
    • Vocabulary Development
    • Circle Time
    • Books with these themes
    • Caregiver’s use of kind, supportive words in daily interactions
  • Story Time
  • Car Talk
  • Words to teach in sign language
  • Shopping for books, games, and toys
  • Redecorating the child’s room
  • Working in the garden
  • Caring for pets
  • Visiting relatives and friends