They say we should be the change we want to see, which is why we’ve put together this list of kindness quotes for kids. Making an effort to be kind is more important now than ever, so share these reliably sourced quotes about kindness with your students to encourage a sense of empathy, thoughtfulness, and caring.
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Simple Kindness Quotes for Kids
Spread the message of kindness in words clear enough for even young students to understand.
1. Be a rainbow in somebody else’s cloud. —Maya Angelou
2. You can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness! —Anne Frank
3. If you see someone without a smile, give them yours. —Dolly Parton
4. Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible. —Dalai Lama
5. The only way to have a friend is to be one. —Ralph Waldo Emerson
6. No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. —Aesop
7. Kindness is a gift everyone can afford to give. —Unknown
8. If you can be anything, be kind. —Unknown
9. Be nice to strangers. Be nice even when it doesn’t matter. —Sam Altman
10. Never lose a chance of saying a kind word. —William Makepeace Thackeray
11. We are all neighbors. Be kind. Be gentle. —Clemantine Wamariya
12. It’s very important to choose kindness and stop bullying. —Jacob Tremblay
13. Kindness is showing someone they matter. —Unknown
14. If you work really hard and you’re kind, amazing things will happen. —Conan O’Brien
15. The catch phrase for the day is “Do an act of kindness. Help one person smile.” —Harvey Ball
16. Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind. —Henry James
17. Kindness is the key to changing the world. —Unknown
18. One kind word can change someone’s entire day. —Unknown
19. Kindness is free; let’s pass it on. —Unknown
20. The world is full of kind people. If you can’t find one, be one. —Unknown
21. Kindness is the gift that keeps on giving. —Unknown
22. Spread love everywhere you go … kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile. —Mother Teresa
23. Always set a high value on spontaneous kindness. —Samuel Johnson
24. It is kindness that makes one strong and brave. —L. Frank Baum
25. Kindness is the wish that all may enjoy happiness. —Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
Inspirational Quotes About Kindness for Teens
The words or ideas may be a little more complex, but the basic message of kindness stays the same.
26. I think I have learned that the best way to lift one’s self up is to help someone else. —Booker T. Washington
27. As our kindness for ourselves grows, so does our kindness for other people. —Pema Chodron
28. Imagine what our real neighborhoods would be like if each of us offered … just one kind word to another person. —Fred Rogers
29. You can never do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late. —Ralph Waldo Emerson
30. Shall we make a new rule of life from tonight: always to try to be a little kinder than is necessary? —J.M. Barrie
31. The words of kindness are more healing to a drooping heart than balm or honey. —Sarah Fielding
32. Kindness can become its own motive. We are made kind by being kind. —Eric Hoffer
33. Extend yourself in kindness to other human beings wherever you can. —Oprah Winfrey
34. Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty. —Anne Herbert
35. Always stop to think whether your fun may be the cause of another’s unhappiness. —Aesop
36. It takes strength to be kind; it’s not a weakness. —Daniel Lubetzky
37. We should model the kindness we want to see. —Brené Brown
38. I work best when there’s a safety trampoline of kindness. —Ruth Negga
39. Deliberately seek opportunities for kindness, sympathy, and patience. —Evelyn Underhill
40. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. —Amelia Earhart
41. Kindness is like snow—it beautifies everything it covers. —Kahlil Gibran
42. There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up. —John Holmes
43. Be mindful; Be grateful; Be positive; Be true; Be kind. —Roy T. Bennett
44. Kindness is the mark we leave on the world. —Unknown
45. The very nature of kindness is to spread. If you are kind to others, today they will be kind to you, and tomorrow to somebody else. —Sri Chinmoy
46. Kindness is the greatest gift you can give and receive. —Unknown
47. Carry out a random act of kindness with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you. —Diana, Princess of Wales
48. Kind hearts are the gardens, kind thoughts are the roots, kind words are the flowers, kind deeds are the fruits. —Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
49. Kindness and love are the essence of a happy life. —Unknown
50. Kindness is choosing love over hate, light over darkness, compassion over judgment. —Unknown
51. When we feel love and kindness toward others, it not only makes others feel loved and cared for, but it helps us also to develop inner happiness and peace. —Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama
52. Kindness is a passport that opens doors and fashions friends. It softens hearts and molds relationships that can last lifetimes. —Joseph B. Wirthlin
53. Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver. —Barbara De Angelis
54. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break; the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. —Barack Obama
55. Remember there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end. —Scott Adams
56. Guard within yourself that treasure, kindness. Know how to give without hesitation, how to lose without regret, how to acquire without meanness. —George Sand
57. Real kindness seeks no return;
What return can the world make to rain clouds?
—Thiruvalluvar
58. The more you extend kindness to yourself, the more it will become your automatic response to others. —Wayne Dyer
59. Transformation: Compassion and loving kindness can transform an enemy into a friend, while right view and wisdom can transform suffering into happiness. —Thich Nhat Tu
60. Kindness is the power that moves us to support and heal someone who offers nothing in return. —Lewis B. Smedes
61. Pain and suffering, they are a secret. Kindness and love, they are a secret. But I have learned that kindness and love can pay for pain and suffering. —Alan Paton
62. Is she kind as she is fair? For beauty lives with kindness. —William Shakespeare
63. Whoever is deprived of kindness is deprived of all good. —Muhammad
64. And for all his life it would be kindness and love that made him cry, never pain or persecution. —Albert Camus
65. We carry with us, as human beings, not just the capacity to be kind, but the very choice of kindness. —R.J. Palacio
Kindness Quotes for Writing Prompts
These quotes require a little more thought to understand fully, making them ideal for writing prompts. Ask students to reflect on the meaning of each quote and how it applies to their own lives.
66. The superior man is the providence of the inferior. He is eyes for the blind, strength for the weak, and a shield for the defenseless. … He rises by lifting others. —Robert G. Ingersoll
67. Great things are done by a series of small things brought together. —Vincent van Gogh
68. Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. —Unknown
69. What I want is so simple I almost can’t say it: elementary kindness. Enough to eat, enough to go around. The possibility that kids might one day grow up to be neither the destroyers nor the destroyed. —Barbara Kingsolver, Animal Dreams
70. The mother’s love is not given to us to spoil us with indulgence, but to soften our hearts, that we may in turn soften others with kindness. —Paramahansa Yogananda
71. Weeds are flowers too, once you get to know them. —A.A. Milne
72. Take one cup of love, two cups of loyalty, three cups of forgiveness, four quarts of faith and one barrel of laughter … blend with tenderness, kindness and understanding. —Zig Ziglar
73. I have always depended on the kindness of strangers. —Tennessee Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire
74. One who knows how to show and to accept kindness will be a friend better than any possession. —Sophocles
75. Kindness is wisdom. —Philip James Bailey
76. Kindness is the only service that will stand the storm of life and not wash out. —Abraham Lincoln
77. Men, be kind to your fellow-men; this is your first duty, kind to every age and station, kind to all that is not foreign to humanity. What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness? —Jean-Jacques Rousseau
78. Kindness is the beauty that can only be seen by the heart. —Unknown
79. Kindness is the oil that takes the friction out of life. —Unknown
80. Be kind to people on the way up—you’ll meet them again on your way down. —Jimmy Durante
81. Kindness is the language of the soul. —Unknown
82. On that best portion of a good man’s life,
his little, nameless, unremembered, acts
of kindness and of love.
—William Wordsworth
83. To be able to practice five things everywhere under heaven constitutes perfect virtue … gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness, and kindness. —Confucius
84. True kindness presupposes the faculty of imagining as one’s own the sufferings and joys of others. —André Gide
Kindness Quotes for Discussion and Debate
These quotes present a point of view that not all students may agree with or fully understand. They’re perfectly suited to spark debates or inspire thoughtful classroom discussions.
85. Greatness is not found in possessions, power, position, or prestige. It is discovered in goodness, humility, service, and character. —William Arthur Ward
86. A part of kindness consists in loving people more than they deserve. —Joseph Joubert
87. Compassion isn’t about solutions. It’s about giving all the love that you’ve got. —Cheryl Strayed
88. Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough. —Franklin D. Roosevelt
89. Kindness is a sort of love without being love. —Susan Hill
90. I suspect that the happiest people you know are the ones who work at being kind, helpful and reliable—and happiness sneaks into their lives while they are busy doing those things. It is a by-product, never a primary goal. —Harold Kushner
91. We are an arrogant species, full of terrible potential, but we also have a great capacity for love, friendship, generosity, kindness, faith, hope, and joy. —Dean Koontz, Fear Nothing
92. Voluntary service of others demands the best of which one is capable, and must take precedence over service of self. —Mahatma Gandhi
93. There is nothing more truly artistic than to love people. —Vincent van Gogh
94. Kindness is the investment that pays the highest interest. —Unknown
95. Kindness has converted more sinners than either zeal, eloquence, or learning. —Frederick William Faber
96. It is only after one is in trouble that one realizes how little sympathy and kindness there are in the world. —Nellie Bly
97. There is hunger for ordinary bread, and there is hunger for love, for kindness, for thoughtfulness; and this is the great poverty. —Mother Teresa
98. Getting money is not all a man’s business: to cultivate kindness is a valuable part of the business of life. —Samuel Johnson
99. Only through kindness and love can peace of mind be achieved. —Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
100. Everything we have and everything we enjoy, including our very life, is due to the kindness of others. In fact, every happiness there is in the world arises as a result of others’ kindness. —Kelsang Gyatso
10 Ways To Use Quotes About Kindness in Your Classroom
Try these ideas and activities for using kindness quotes with your students at any grade level.
1. Decorate the school for World Kindness Day
World Kindness Day is celebrated on November 13 each year. Print our quote images and hang them throughout your school halls, on classroom doors—even in bathroom stalls! Surround your students with reminders of the importance of being kind, on World Kindness Day and every day.
2. Use favorite kindness quotes as icebreakers
For a quick and easy icebreaker, ask students to read through the list of kindness quotes and choose their favorite. When they introduce themselves, they can also share their quote and explain why they like it. Bonus tip: Print out each quote and hang it alongside a photo of each student on a bulletin board to help kids get to know one another.
3. Host a kindness quotes scavenger hunt
Post small versions of the quote images in various places around your school, each with a number. To win the hunt, kids must find each quote and write it down along with its number. Older kids can also take pictures of the quotes themselves with their phones. This is a fun way to get to know a new school while also emphasizing empathy.
4. Make kindness collages
Choose a quote and feature it on a piece of chart paper. Then, ask students to look for pictures in old magazines, newspapers, books, etc., that exemplify that quote. Cut them out, paste them on, and use the collages for classroom decor.
5. Use quotes about kindness as writing prompts
Post a quote and ask students to reflect on their reactions to it. Or let them choose one of their favorites and write about what makes it meaningful to them.
6. Hold a kindness quotes poster contest
Let students choose their favorite quote from the list, then create a poster to illustrate it. Hang all the posters in the classroom halls, with prizes for a few winners in each grade. You could even turn winning posters into T-shirts or stickers!
7. Choose a quote and create a mural
This makes a fun collaborative art project: Vote on a quote to represent your class or school, then decorate a hallway or bathroom stall door with a painted mural to illustrate it. If each class creates one mural, you’ll have a school full of kindness quotes.
8. Share quotes about kindness on sticky notes
Jot kindness quotes on sticky notes and post them in random places around school: locker doors, books in the library, bathroom mirrors, etc. Try this project with an after-school club or as a class team-building activity.
9. Make kindness cards to share
Pass out card stock and art supplies, and have kids fold their card stock in half to make greeting cards. They can decorate the cards any way they like, as long as they include at least one kindness quote on the front or inside. Send the cards to a children’s hospital, senior living facility, or to those serving in the military overseas.
10. Create social media images featuring quotes about kindness
Ask kids to create an image for social media that includes their favorite quote. They could do digital illustrations, photos with the quotes added, or even a short video demonstrating their kindness quote in action! Share these on your school social media pages, and be sure to give students credit for their work.
Don’t forget to grab your free printable kindness quotes posters!
With quotes about kindness like “You will never regret being kind” and “Throw kindness like confetti,” these free printables help encourage empathy in kids of all ages.
Come share your favorite kindness quotes for kids in the We Are Teachers HELPLINE group on Facebook!
Plus, if you loved these kindness quotes, check out these motivational quotes for students and teachers.
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