Kids Can Do Chores, Too!

I have always had a list posted in my kitchen of my daily, weekly, and monthly household "chores."  It helped to keep me on track so I didn't forget things, and the goal was also that it would keep me from overdoing it all in one day.  When I was a mom of just little people (I had four under three years old when the twins were born), it was a sanity saver.  I work better and relax better in a clean and organized environment.  But sometimes my desire for cleanliness makes me a little "OCD" as my mom says.  Trying to do all of the jobs in one afternoon usually leads to a crying breakdown right about the time dinner needs to be cooking...

Some days with little people feel as if the cycle will never end.  The kids make a mess.  You clean the mess.  Or you don't clean the mess and it eventually drives you nuts.  But recently I have entered a "sweet spot" where my kids are able to help with the chores.  Now, many times it still feels easier if I just do the chores myself.  I can do it better, faster, and it will be exactly how I like it.  That is doing a disservice to myself, because I can't possibly do it all,  and also to my kids, because they are not learning to keep things tidy for themselves.

For the last couple of years I have been working very hard to teach my kids how to help with the chores.  Sometimes I thought they would never get it.  It was hard work on my part.  It was frustrating.  But now I can see that it was worth it, because I am reaping the rewards.

When I was growing up in a homeschool family, each morning we had a routine.  We didn't do school on the couch all day in our pajamas.  When Dad woke us up we had our quiet time with the Lord, got dressed, made our beds, and then we had breakfast together.  After breakfast it was chore time.  There were three kids in the family, soMom set aside three areas of responsibility - the bathrooms, the vacuuming, and the kitchen.  We rotated the chores each month so that everyone learned to do a good job in each area.  It also kept us from getting bored.  We also had to help with laundry and weekend deep cleaning, as well as washing the car (my dad's area of OCD).

All of this was good for me.  I learned to clean up after myself as I went along so that morning chores were easier.  I learned to do a good job at cleaning, or my mom would call me back to do it again.  And I learned to do these jobs quickly, so that now as a mom of six kids they don't take me very long.  I want the same results for my own kids.

Some of my kids are neater than others.  One child gets up and meticulously makes his bed - first thing, every morning.  Another child is ALWAYS getting called back to fix things, but is recently showing some improvement.  One kid likes to periodically dump everything out and reorganize it.  One child often sets the breakfast table before I get downstairs...but probably just because he wants to eat sooner. 😀 And to my delight, my four year old made his bed, ALL BY HIMSELF for the first time this week.  It wasn't perfect, but it was perfectly delightful.

Don't be afraid to teach your kids to do chores, and to put up with things not being quite right while they are learning.  (But you also have to teach them what isn't quite right so that they can keep trying harder and getting better at their job.)  It is good for them to learn that being part of a family comes with responsibility.

Some chores that we give our little people:

• Make their own bed.  It won't look great at the beginning.  
• Use the dustbuster on the steps
• Use mop spray (Pine Sol dilluted in a spray bottle) and a rag on the wood steps.  They love to spray!
• Clean the front door glass, and understand that it won't look perfect, and you will use up a lot of Windex.
• Put their own laundry away.  My kids could do this from about age 2.  I made picture labels on their drawers so they knew where to put things, and I handed them one type of clothes at a time (i.e. jammies, then socks, then shirts).
• Fold cloth napkins (don't be too picky about how they turn out!)
• Bigger kids can do bathrooms and vacuuming.
• Sometimes we all sort toys.
• Most of my kids can straighten and sort their clothing drawers when things get messy.
• Everyone has a treasure box and is responsible to clean it up when it gets overwhelming.
• I started teaching my kids to do breakfast dishes around age 5.  Bowls, spoons, and plastic cups are pretty easy!
• Washing the car is usually a family activity.  They will learn with repetition.

I usually use a simple chore chart - a page with pictures and checkboxes.  If you laminate it, the kids can use dry erase markers on it each day.

Do your kids do chores?  What kids of jobs do you delegate to them?