Service to my community and fellow humans is very important to me, but it’s hard to find a good place to take a little one who is too young to do any real “work,” but is too old to just sit in a sling while you do something meaningful.

Here are 10 ideas to help my fellow mama philanthropists find opportunities to volunteer with toddlers and preschoolers. While some of the ideas are season- or holiday-specific, you can tweak them to work at any time of the year.

• Adopt-a-Person: Find someone who needs help—an elderly person in your own neighborhood, someone at church who is ill, a single parent—and come up with creative ways to make them smile. Walk their dogs, plant some flowers, bring them some homemade muffins. Put it on the calendar and get your little one excited to help: “It’s Friday, what can we do for Ed today?!”
• Connect Generations: If you have a sociable kiddo, he might enjoy connecting with older adults. Try visiting assisted living centers, nursing homes or your elderly neighbors. Bring flowers to the residents on Valentine’s Day, make homemade garland to decorate for the holidays, take sugar-free muffins any day. When my son was a toddler, we were part of a local toddler/preschooler music class that met at Brighton Gardens of Prairie Village. The residents loved to listen to the little ones singing, and the children had fun performing for a captive audience every week.
• Make a Donation: Have fun going on a monthly spree to collect donations. Canned food for a food bank, gently used clothes for a women’s shelter, baby items for a birth center. Delivering the items should be half of the fun!
• Go Wild: Does your little one have a soft spot for animals? Find a way to volunteer with animals or donate to wildlife causes. The World Wildlife Federation has a new gift catalog that allows supporters to make a donation and select a symbolic animal adoption. Charity Wire has a list of other animal and conservation charities that may offer other giving programs.
• Find a Friend: All your little ones want to do is play, right? Well, let them play! Find an organization that serves children (the Boys & Girls Clubs, a homeless or domestic violence shelter day program, library story times), and ask how you can help. Your child may have more fun making a meaningful connection with another child. The United Way of Greater Kansas City should have some opportunities that will fit your family’s needs.
• Pack It Up: If you have a few dollars to spare each month, use it to make different kinds of packs. You could make packs to hand out to the homeless, including items like new socks, used books, portable snacks and water and toiletry samples. You can hand out your packs to anyone you see out and about town, or you could drop packs off at one of our local homeless shelters, like the Kansas City Rescue Mission. Is it back-to-school time? Stuff backpacks full of common school supplies to donate to children in need. There are also international organizations like Operation Christmas Child. You can fill shoeboxes with gifts for children, and the shoeboxes are then sent overseas to kids in need.
• Save Change: This year my son, Kieran, was introduced to “Trick or Treat for UNICEF.” He raised about $15.00 in change with his little orange box. The way we helped make it meaningful for Kieran was by relating it to the “Little Engine That Could” story (one of his favorites). He loved pretending he was the little engine, helping bring good things to the boys and girls on the other side of the mountain. When the Salvation Army bell ringers are out, we talk about how the money people put in the kettles also goes to help those in need. At home every day, he pretends to trick or treat and ring a bell (sometimes simultaneously), and we give him coins. He can’t wait to give the coins to help “the boys and girls.”
• Easy Bake: Do you and your child love to bake? Make an extra batch of cookies and take it to your local fire station, National Guard Armory, police station or other service-oriented organization. Write a note thanking the men and women for their service (or as Kieran says, “for helping keep our city/country safe”).
• Arts & Crafts: If your little one is reserved, you might want to opt for an activity that doesn’t involve meet and greet with a bunch of strangers. Try making and decorating holiday cards. You can send them overseas to let our service men and women know that their efforts are appreciated. Or send them to residents of a nursing home or assisted living center.
• Recycle It: Does your library have a recycling bin? What about your office (or your partner’s)? Do you recycle at home? If not, why not start?! Involve your little one in the process of arranging for recycling, for selecting bins, etc. It’s never too early to start raising an eco-conscious child!

Dionna Ford lives in Independence with her family.