• Parent Resources
• Overview
• Raising Kids Who Give, Share & Care
  • 1. Your Child's Growth in Understanding Philanthropy
  • 2. What You Can Do to Encourage the Teaching of Philanthropy
    • Learning to Give Curriculum Overview
    • Philanthropy—Learning the Basics, Learning the Specifics
    • Nine Ways to Raise Children Who Give, Share & Care
  • 3. Celebrating Diversity in Giving, Sharing and Caring
• Helping Your Child Succeed at School
• Homeschooling Your Child (LTG Resources)

• Versión en Español

Philanthropy ― Learning the Basics, Learning the Specifics

In the past, we have relied on churches, families, friends and neighborhoods to teach children the value and significance of service and giving. We have assumed that our children know their heritage as citizens, and are born “empowered” to exercise that right. It is sadly ironic that today, as emerging foreign democracies seek our assistance in establishing philanthropic traditions of their own, the traditional forces for teaching this ethic to children in the United States are eroding.

The community cohesion that is so necessary in an increasingly diverse society can be found in the skills and experiences of the nonprofit or third sector. Yet an understanding of this sector remains a mystery to many American children.

Each day leaders from emerging democracies come to the United States with a relatively surprising question. They want to know how they can create a nonprofit or third sector in their countries. They ask for guidance on teaching democratic and philanthropic principles to their children, and about systems for passing on the tradition of private citizens working for the common good. They come to the United States because they recognize that the nonprofit sector in America is fundamental to building and sustaining a secure democracy, supporting government, and to making our heterogeneous society function.

Their questions echo many of those posed by teachers and civic leaders in the United States: How do we engage children in civic life? How do we harness youthful idealism and combat growing cynicism? How do we teach caring about others, particularly those less fortunate? What is missing from our courses in government, history, economics, sociology, psychology, and philosophy that results in young adults without the understanding or passion for the noble ideas of their society?

Until recently, the transmission of the philanthropic tradition from one generation to the next was informal, and so effective as to be transparent. There has never been a formal curriculum for teaching the facts or illustrating the value and contribution of the nonprofit sector.

Acknowledging this need, Learning to Give has made significant progress in its unique effort to write, field test, implement and disseminate high-quality, K-12 lessons on philanthropy. The ultimate goal is to perpetuate a civil society where young people become involved in giving and serving in their communities and form a lifelong commitment to voluntary action for the common good.

Take a moment to explore the lesson links below to see how the ideas come alive in four sample lessons from our talented teachers:

• a K-2 lesson on "Selfless - Selfish,"
  
• a 3-5 lesson on "We Need More Than Money,"
  
• a 6-8 lesson on "A Road Less Traveled," and,
  
• a 9-12 lesson on "Philanthropic Research."