(NC) The holidays are a magical time, especially for children. Whether your family decorates the Christmas tree, lights the Kwanzaa kinara or plays the dreidel game for Hanukah (or all the above), it’s easy for any little one to get swept up in the joy of gifts and traditional food. As parents and guardians, we can also forget the fuller meaning of the holidays as we bury ourselves in to-do lists and brave bustling shopping centres for last-minute errands.

Of course, the spirit of the holidays is about more than what goes on inside the home. It’s about giving back, beyond setting out cookies and milk for Santa.

Here are three family-friendly ways to give back:

1. Volunteer at a soup kitchen. Find a shelter near you that offers a drop-in meal program for those in need. You will likely have to submit an application form, and the sooner the better, as these volunteer spots might fill up fast for the holidays. If that’s the case, then you can always make it your family’s New Year’s resolution.
2. Donate to a food bank. Hit up a grocery store with your children and allow them to pick out canned soup and boxed pasta for a local food bank. It’s a fun way for them to get involved.
3. Give charitable donations. As a family, sit down and pick a charity. Or perhaps each family member can donate money to a charity of their choice instead of, or as well as, giving gifts.

However you choose to give back over the holidays, you will not only be doing a good deed – you will teach your children lifelong lessons about poverty, human rights and social justice.

Find more information at amnesty.ca.