Reverse Advent Calendar: A Giving Box for Families

A reverse advent calendar flips the usual idea: every day your family adds one useful item to a box, and the full box goes to a food bank or shelter. It shows kids that giving can be part of the countdown.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Call or check the website of a local food bank or shelter to learn what they need and where to drop it off.
2. Decorate the box with wrapping paper, stickers and the words “Our Giving Box.”
3. Write the dates, December 1 to 24, on a checklist taped to the lid.
4. Make a shopping list of 24 items, such as pasta, rice, canned beans and socks.
5. Each day, let a child choose and add one item, then check off the date.
6. Share one thing you are thankful for as you add it.
7. Check expiration dates on all foods before they go in.
8. On December 23 or 24, load the box into the car and deliver it together.
9. Take a photo to look back on next year.

Tips for Little Hands

• Keep the box on a low shelf so kids can reach it.
• Do not donate glass jars, opened packages or anything expired.
• Let each child pick one item with their own allowance.
• Young kids can match items to the checklist with stickers.

Make It Your Own

• Add handwritten cards from the kids to include in the box.
• Make it a pet-food box for an animal shelter.
• Invite neighbors or a class to fill one together.