38 Best Honesty Activities for Kids (PDF)

Honesty Activities for Kids: In this post, we’ll explore the concept of honesty and propose engaging activities to teach kids the importance of being honest individuals. We also include a few fun honesty worksheets that kids can enjoy at home or in the classroom.

What is Honesty?

Honesty is the quality of being truthful, sincere, and free from deceit. It involves consistently adhering to your values and principles, being transparent in your communication, and taking responsibility for the accuracy of that communication and for your actions.

Honesty is a key component of character education, as it helps students build a strong moral foundation, practice ethical decision-making in their daily lives, and earn the trust of others, which strengthens their relationships.

In Peterson and Seligman’s character strengths and virtues classification, honesty is classified as an emotional strength that helps deal with setbacks and challenges within the virtue category of courage.

Cooper et al (2023) developed a multidimensional framework of honesty, expanding from the dichotomy of lie vs truth to capture different dimensions of honest behavior:

• Honest content: The truthfulness and correctness of the information shared.
• Honest disclosure: Truthful information sharing versus withholding or omission.
• Honest delivery: How we share information and how it affects the recipient’s clear and comprehensive understanding. For example, how we can modify the perception by using humor, body language, or emphasizing certain aspects of the content.
• Intellectual honesty: How do we make sure and validate that the information we share is actually true and accurate.

Why Teaching Honesty? Consequences of Dishonesty

There are many reasons why we need to teach kids honesty:

• Strong character development: Honesty helps kids grow into responsible and ethical individuals.
• Trust building: Honesty encourages trust from others, which strengthens relationships.
• Accountability awareness: Honesty teaches children the importance of owning up to their actions and taking responsibility when they make mistakes.
• Future success path: Being honest lays the groundwork for personal and professional success, as honesty is a valued trait in all areas of life.
• Positive environment: Honesty creates a more open and respectful atmosphere at home, in school, and among peers.

Honesty is one of the most important character traits, and learning how to be truthful without causing harm helps children navigate tricky situations with kindness and integrity.

Negative Consequences of Being Dishonest.

And, if all those positives are not enough reasons, let’s also consider the negative consequences that dishonest behavior could have for kids:

• Loss of trust: When people find out a child has been dishonest, they are less likely to trust them in the future, and they may end up leaving them out.
• Damaged relationships: Dishonesty can create misunderstandings, hurt feelings, and lead to broken relationships.
• Guilt and stress: Lying or being deceitful can bring on emotional strain, causing guilt or anxiety about being discovered.
• Reputation harm: Being dishonest can harm a child’s reputation, making others see them as unreliable or untrustworthy.
• Consequences in school or work: Dishonesty, like cheating or providing false information, can result in penalties at school or later in the workplace.

Tips to Teach Kids About Honesty.

Before diving into our fun honesty activities, let’s go over some quick tips to help instill honesty in your kids’ everyday lives.

• Model honesty: Show them what honesty looks like by being a good example for them.
• Praise honesty: Recognize and celebrate when they tell the truth, even when it’s hard.
• Talk about honesty: Have open conversations about why telling the truth matters. Share your personal experiences and how being honest in a difficult time helped you feel better because you had done the right thing.
• Use stories: Read books or share stories where honesty plays a key role.
• Explain consequences: Help them understand the impact of dishonesty on trust and relationships and share all the good reasons to avoid dishonesty.
• Create a safe environment for honesty: Let them know it’s okay to tell the truth, even if they’ve made a mistake.
• Teach through games and fun activities: Using fun activities and games can be an effective way to reinforce the value of truthfulness.

This last tip takes us to our next section: fun honesty activities to add to your lesson plan or educational activities at home.

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Best Honesty Activities for Kids.

Honesty activities are fun and engaging exercises designed to teach kids the value of honesty. They can include games, crafts, discussions, and role-playing scenarios that encourage children to practice honesty in a safe and supportive way.

I’ve organized these activities as follows:

• Activities to Explore and Understand Honesty.
• Honesty Games.
• Other Honesty Activities.
• Honesty Crafts for Kids.

Activities to Explore & Understand Honesty.

These activities help kids think about what being honest means, how it feels, and why it’s important. Many of these activities would be great additions to your character education lessons.

1. Honesty definition: Ask your students to write in their own words what honesty means. Explore the concept of honesty, and at the end of the honesty lesson, ask them to rewrite their definition and explore how it has changed from their initial perspective.
2. The honesty speech: Ask kids to give a short speech about why being honest is important, helping them express their thoughts on honesty.
3. “The Truth Hurts” talk: Discuss how sometimes telling the truth can be difficult, but it’s important for long-term trust and respect.
   • “What if?” Scenarios: Present different scenarios and ask kids how honesty would affect the outcome—great for discussing difficult situations.
4. Story circle: Have kids share stories about a time they made a mistake and how telling the truth helped fix it.
5. Truth challenges: Set daily challenges like admitting a mistake or telling a hard truth, and reward kids for being honest.
6. Honesty classroom poster: Create a poster showing what honesty means to each child, using words and drawings to express their ideas.
7. Role Models of Honesty: Incorporate this into your social studies lessons by researching historical figures like Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, or Harriet Tubman, who were known for their honesty. Discuss how their truthfulness impacted society and what we can learn from their actions.
8. Honesty essay: Have kids write a short essay on what honesty means to them, why it’s important, and how they practice it in everyday situations. This reflective activity helps them think deeply about the value of being truthful and how it impacts their relationships and character.
9. Little white lies discussion: Discuss those little white lies we sometimes tell to avoid hurting someone’s feelings or smoothing a situation. Learning when and how to be honest, even in tricky situations, is a key part of building strong character.
   • For example, ask kids what would be the best way to deal with a situation where they receive a gift they don’t like. How could they be honest but avoid hurting other people’s feelings? A good choice could be, instead of saying, “I love this,” they could focus on something positive by saying, “Thank you so much for thinking of me!” This response is honest, as it shows gratitude without directly lying about liking the gift.

Honesty Games.

These are fun, interactive ways to practice honesty through play. Kids can enjoy games and activities that test their ability to be truthful in different situations while learning how honesty builds trust.

10. Truth bingo: Create a bingo card filled with honesty-related actions. Kids mark off squares as they complete the tasks—turn honesty into a fun game.

11. Role-play scenarios: Act out real-life situations in which kids face the choice of being honest or not. This helps them think through how to handle tricky situations.
    Your free download includes role-play scenarios and scenario cards to help kids practice honesty in everyday situations that might feel a bit tricky.
12. Truth detectives: Sometimes, we need to do a little investigating to make sure what we say is accurate. In this activity, kids become “truth detectives” by researching topics like climate change, recycling, or healthy eating. They’ll look up reliable information to ensure they’re sharing facts, not guesses. This activity teaches them that honesty also means making the effort to know the truth before speaking, helping them avoid spreading inaccuracies due to a lack of knowledge.
13. Guess who’s honest: Share stories about acts of honesty from kids in the group and have them guess who the honest person is—great for recognizing each other’s honesty.
14. Honesty scavenger hunt: Hide cards around a room or outdoor space, each with a question about honesty and a clue to the next card. Kids answer honestly to move forward and find the next clue.
     Example activities:
     Card 1: What does honesty mean to you? Share your answer, then check the bookshelf for the next clue.
     Card 2: If you accidentally broke something valuable, how would you respond honestly? Answer and look near the door for the next clue.
     Card 3: Have you ever told the truth when it was difficult? Share your story, then search under the table for the next clue.
     This combines honesty reflection with a fun, interactive hunt.
15. Honesty skits: Have kids act out short skits where honesty plays a key role in the story. It’s a creative way to practice being truthful in different situations.
16. Honesty tower: Play a group game like Jenga, but each time a block is removed, the child has to share a time when they were honest.
17. Circle of honesty: Sit in a circle and take turns sharing a time when you told the truth, even when it was hard. It’s a simple way to show that honesty is valued.
18. Ball of truth: Toss a ball around, and when a child catches it, they must share something truthful—whether it’s an honest fact about themselves or a moment they were honest.

Other Honesty Activities.

The following honesty activities are creative ways to reinforce honesty in everyday life. Whether through discussions, rewards, or artistic expression, these activities keep honesty front and center in a fun and engaging way.

19. Honesty quotes: Ask kids to research honesty quotes and pick one or a few that resonate with them. Ask them to explain what they think the author of those quotes meant. 
    I have included an Honesty Quotes Worksheet in your download at the end of this post. It features several quotes and explains what the authors meant.
    Other examples of honesty quotes by famous people:
    • “Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom,” – Thomas Jefferson;
    • “Honesty is the best policy,” – Benjamin Franklin;
    • “Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable. Be honest and transparent anyway,” – Mother Teresa.
20. The Honest Friend Award: Give out awards to kids who consistently practice honesty. It’s a simple way to encourage truthfulness by recognizing their efforts.
21. The honesty chain: Kids write acts of honesty on paper strips and link them together to form a chain. Watch it grow as honesty spreads!
22. Trust-Building exercises: Engage in activities where kids must rely on each other’s honesty, like guiding a blindfolded partner. Trust only works if honesty is there.
23. Honesty poem: Ask kids to write a short poem about honesty, focusing on what it means and how it feels to be truthful. This creative activity encourages them to express the value of honesty in their own words.

24. Honesty acrostic poem: Have kids create an acrostic poem using the word “HONESTY,” where each letter starts a line describing what honesty means to them. This helps them think about different aspects of being truthful in a fun, creative way.
25. Honest compliments: Go around the room giving honest compliments to each other. No flattery—just kind, sincere words!
26. Honesty puppet show: A great way to teach young children about honesty. Use puppets to act out scenarios where honesty is important. Let kids create their own skits to practice telling the truth in a fun, creative way.
27. Honesty adventure comic strip: Have kids create their own comic strip where the main character faces challenges that require honesty to solve. It’s a creative way to explore truth-telling.
28. Truthful apologies: Teach kids how to give meaningful apologies by being honest about their actions. Practice writing or saying truthful apologies to show how honesty helps heal relationships.
29. Truthful superheroes: Have kids draw or create superheroes whose power is honesty. It shows that telling the truth is a strength, not a weakness.
30. Interview with honesty: Kids pair up and interview each other about a time they had to be honest. It’s a good way to share personal stories and reflect on honesty.

31. Coloring pages: Use honesty-themed coloring pages to reinforce the message. Kids can color while thinking about what honesty means to them.
    You can also download an honesty coloring page for your young kids at the end of this post.
32. Honesty pledge: Create an honesty pledge for kids to sign, committing to being truthful in their actions and words. It’s a simple yet powerful way to make honesty a personal goal.
33. What I value in a friend: Have kids list the traits they admire in a friend, and check how many value honesty as an important quality in their relationships.
34. Saying yes to honesty songs: Write or sing songs about honesty. Music is a fun way to reinforce positive messages about telling the truth. 

Honesty Crafts for Kids.

35. Honesty rocks: Have kids paint rocks with words or images representing honesty. They can keep the rocks as a reminder of the importance of being truthful.
    Related reading: Gratitude Rocks for Kids (Tutorials).
36. Honesty tree: Create a paper tree on a wall, and let kids add leaves with acts of honesty written on them. As they share truthful moments, the tree “grows.”
37. Honesty collage: Let kids cut out pictures, words, or phrases from magazines that represent honesty to them, and glue them onto a poster to create a visual representation of truthfulness.

Honesty Books for Kids.

38. Book talk: Read books about honesty and have a discussion with kids about the choices the characters made and how honesty played a role.
    Examples of children’s books are:
    • Teach Your Dragon to Stop Lying (4 to 7 y.o.)
    • Teach Your Dragon Integrity (4 to 7 y.o.)
    • Honesty is my Super Power (3 to 7 y.o.)
    • Honesty: The Best Me I Can Be (3 to 7 y.o.)
      For older children:
    • What Do You Stand For?: For Teens: A Guide to Building Character (10-13 y.o.)

Other Social Emotional Learning ResourcesHonest

Looking for more ways to teach kids important values? Check out these additional social-emotional learning resources to help them develop skills like empathy, kindness, and self-control:

• 30+ Anti-Bullying Activities for Kids
• 30 Respect Activities for Kids
• 101 Kindness Activities for Kids
• 34 Activities to Teach Kids Responsibility
• 32 Fun Sharing Activities for Kids
• 28 Self-Awareness Activities for Kids
• Emotional Strengths: Activities & Examples

Honesty Worksheets for Kids (Free PDF Donwload)

Your honesty worksheet (digital download) is a great resource that includes the following activities:

• Honesty Role Play Scenarios (Includes role play cards)
• Honesty Quotes Worksheet
• Honesty Acrostic Poem
• Honesty Coloring Page

These can be used for school counseling sessions, as lesson plans, or even at home to help reinforce the importance of honesty.

Encouraging child honesty helps build trust and fosters strong, open relationships in which children feel safe expressing themselves truthfully. I hope the activities included in this blog post help your students learn this important skill.