Do you make your Children write thank you cards

[CarolineCJ]

I am just curious as to how many people ask their children to write thank you cards after they have received something say Christmas/Birthday,

I'm in my thirties and still write them now. It is rude to not say thanks to the person giving the present. I personally don't think a text on whattsapp has the same effort or feeling.

RitaFairclough, no I don't write thank you notes myself and never have. As explained, I either thank people in person, make thank you phone calls or perhaps thank you emails, WhatsApp messages as appropriate. No gift goes unacknowledged.

No need for a card too. That would be overkill.

If people take the trouble to give a present, then well brought up children must learn to send a thank you card or letter. It is courtesy and gives pleasure to the giver. A text doesnt cut it I'm afraid. I have stopped sending presents to my neices because they couldnt be bothered. I do not expect thank you from my adult children to whom I have handed presents but I love the ones the grand children write and it is a very good lesson in manners. As for the families that label all the presents from Santa ! That would be the last time I sent a present. Manners oil the wheels and many bad feelings would be prevented if people took a few minutes out of their busy lives

We’re starting this year. We’ll just do a couple a night until they’re all done. I was always made to sit for ages and write them all so people got them within some arbitrary time frame and it was miserable. People will have to be patient. Surely they want a fully meant Thankyou, over one extracted under duress.

Yes, I make them write cards. Keeps them busy between Christmas and New Year.

Always do thank you cards, and once they’re a bit older, a little letter in there too.

I don't think a text is enough to say thank you. I expect a card at least from all my godchildren and will bring up my children to do the same.

Yes they do. Large family and we all only buy for the children, there’s a lot of them! As we are spread far and wide we don’t always see each other to say thank you in person so all of the children do thank you cards.

I'm surprised at the number of posters who speak of 'forcing' children to write thank you letters. Do you have to 'force' your children to do anything that's remotely uncongenial?

Surely at some point they will need to learn that sometimes time has to be spent doing things that aren't particularly enjoyable; and then they won't need to be 'forced' to co-operate, but asked in a polite and civilised manner.

If people take the trouble to give a present, then well brought up children must learn to send a thank you card or letter.

My children are polite and well brought up. But they'd look a bit odd sending thank you letters when no one else does it. The younger one probably doesn't even know what a thank you card is because they've never seen me receive one either.

I get them to write thank you cards, to people - mainly older relatives - who aren't 'connected' online.

Otherwise I send e-cards, via e-mail, to save paper.

It seems to be a British thing. Unheard of where I grew up and also where I now live. We still say thank you in some form and no our children are not badly brought up. What a strange attitude some of you have.

If it's what you do in your world that's your thing, please don't write the rest of us off as rude.

Thank you cards are lovely and DS used to send them. However, it's 2019 and he is 13, so it's now a text or Whatsapp.

I love how it's assumed your children are lacking in manners by not sending a card. It could also be seen.that those expecting a card-and who cut off those who dont- are equally lacking in manners.
I wouldn't want a card wrote by a child who doesn't want to send it and it sending under the label of 'you must send one'

Wow, this thread is depressing. There is such joy in a toddler picture or scribble and older children learning to write a thoughtful letter. In today's grabby society children are getting more and more entitled and as a result less charming. Some of these cards will be kept as keepsakes. I had a sweet card from a student daughter expressing thanks that I still have 20 years later, Much more emotion than a phone call or a text. They are underestimated treasures

To you confused. I have plenty of emails I treasure.

I wonder how many are actually kept as treasured possessions or how many actual end up in the recycling??🤔🤔

Cards are prehistoric. Mine are too young to write so I normally send a thank you whatsapp with a picture or video of the child using / playing with the gift and tell then how much they love it. Or sometimes a video of the toddler saying 'thank you for my X'. Plenty! I love it when I recieve similar.

Also, more cards (on top of Christmas and birthdays etc) is so bad for the environment!

My Mum encouraged me to do it as a child and I’ll be doing the same with mine.

I really enjoyed writing or making the cards tbh!

Although I only sent them those those I know will appreciate it (Granny’s, Aunts/Uncles etc).

I assumed they would be chucked at some point. But I was round and my Auntys house the other day and she pulled out a thank you card I wrote her when I was 7!

Yes, especially if they didn't see the person and say thank you at the time of opening. As they get older it can be typed if they prefer.

With birthday parties what I did was get them draw a picture and write thank you for my present love from... Then scan it into the computer and print off. Then get him to write the kid's name at the top of each. Or sometimes use a group photo from the party. At this age parents aren't at the party so the note is really for them although addressed to the child.

Wow, this thread is depressing

I think so too, but for a different reason.

It's depressing to see the insistence that people from areas where thank you cards aren't 'a thing' have no manners.

We do little thank you notes. When each dd was age 3-5 and could sign their name I wrote the notes or printed them with a little photo and they signed them. Under that age they drew a little pic instead. At age 6+ my eldest writes her own thank you notes (under supervision!)

Is a card seen as superior to a personalised whatsapp video? If so why?

Email, text or WhatsApp, for my daughter.

I’m old fashioned and still like to write letters with a fountain pen. My family thinks I’m odd!