Chores for Children

My parents had no problem finding my eight siblings and I chores to do.  We grew up on a large working farm and there was no question we would have daily work to do.  Farm animals needed feeding, the cows had to be milked,  fields tilled, planted and harvested.  We understood early that work not done meant less food on the table, less money in the bank and complaining, miserable animals.  My father, in particular, was fond of saying, “If you don't work, you don't eat”.  And he meant it.

My situation as a mother is somewhat different.  My husband is a businessman, not a farmer and though I often lament this situation, I still understand the importance of children having daily chores to keep them busy, and to teach them how to work and learn self-discipline.  I also want them to know  the joy and fulfillment of a job well done and when it comes to daily chores, using my parent's “farm logic” has helped me organize my children's chores in such a way, that they too believe,  “If you don't work, you don't eat” or at least you won't be playing with your friends or going out on a Friday night!  Below are some tips I've found useful for spurring my children on:     

 1)  Give your children a sense of their importance in the family. 

A sense that the chore they've been given is important to the success of the whole.  For example, the children are given responsibility for cleaning the cluttered family room.  One dusts, one picks up toys and one vacuums.  But the room can't be vacuumed until the toys are picked up and it's hard to dust when toys are all over the place. Each child is shown that without them cooperating and working together, the job as a whole cannot be done.  This works in most everything, setting the table for dinner, cleaning up, yard work etc.  The chores are divided up and one without the other cannot succeed as well as if they all work together. Each job and each child is important.

2)  I found that my children work best when I myself am organized with detailed chore lists, especially when my children were younger.  This requires some forethought and planning on the part of the parent.  For myself, I found it useful to plan weekly and daily the chores each child was to do.  Then, each morning, I wrote their chores for the day on a recipe card which they could mark off and told them, “This is your passport.  When all these things are done and marked off, present the card back to me, and you're free to go play.”  This usually worked because my children are all quite social and involved and had other things they wanted to get on with.  Even today, my eighteen year old will ask on a Saturday, “Okay, where's my chore list, I have other things to do today”.  And he gets his yard work, homework and housework done before he leaves. 

3)  I limit television and video game time though these things along with other favored activities can be used as rewards for chores completed.  We never paid our children for chores done, we considered these part of their responsibility for living in our household, but many parents do, and that can also be used as an initiative.  If and when your child wishes to do extra chores to earn money for something he or she wishes to buy etc, extra paying chores could be asked of them.  When my oldest son was five, he wanted a Ghost buster's play set.  We sat down, organized a list of extra work he could do, posted it and as he worked through the list he could see how far he had to go before he earned the play set.  He still remembers mopping the kitchen floor with a mop two times his size to earn that play set, but he did it, bought it and took special care of it because it was something he earned himself.  I also believe that teaching your children to work for the joy of working and serving others is a valuable lesson.  Provide opportunities for your children to serve others.  Rake an elderly neighbor's yard, clean up someone's kitchen who is ill, not expecting a financial payment in return.   Teaching them to serve selflessly through work is a valuable life's lesson and one of it's greatest rewards

4) If you do use allowances, tying them to daily chores may be a good idea.  I know many parents post weekly chore lists which can be marked off and by week's end, the chores done are tallied and reward ed accordingly with a small allowance.  This could work as a great motivator for the child and further, teach them to effectively earn and manage money.  I also like the idea of a weekly chore chart because the chart puts the responsibility back on the child.  They see their chores, know what they are, and they choose to do them or not.  If they choose not to do them, they don't earn the reward.  Less nagging, more discipline required by them.      

5)  Finally, harking back to my rural upbringing, the most wonderful thing about growing up on a farm was doing farm work with my parents and siblings.  What a camaraderie we developed together and what pride we all took in getting the jobs done well and keeping the farm prosperous.  My siblings and I developed a special closeness and bond working together which continues to this day.  Working together with your children as a team, is one of the most positive experiences they will have growing up and is a good way to instill in them a sense of responsibility and love of work.  For me, there are few things more satisfying than being outside hoeing the garden, mowing the grass or picking up leaves with all my family helping.  We laugh, we talk, we even argue a bit, but we're all together and the work gets done.  The sense of satisfaction that comes from a job well done is just frosting on the cake. 

A list of age appropriate chores, keeping in mind that each child matures at their own rate and has their own personal talents and limitations:
 
            Ages 2 and 3:
           
            Help make beds
            Pick up toys etc.
            Help pick up dirty clothes for laundry basket
            Help feed pets
            Help with simple dinner preparation and clean up
            Other simple household chores with help (dusting, sweeping etc.)
 
            Ages 4 and 5:( in addition to the above)
 
            Clear and set dinner table
            Carrying and helping put away groceries
            Helping with yard work
 
            Ages 6-8: (in addition to the above:)
 
            Feed and care for pets
            Vacuum and mop with help
            Take out trash
            Help with laundry (sort clothes, help put away etc.)
           
 
            Ages 9-12 (in addition to the above)
 
            Help vacuum and clean car
            Learn to load dishes in dishwasher and/or wash in sink
            Help with simple meal preparation
            Clean rooms in the house on their own.
            Do laundry by themselves
            Babysit siblings
 
            Ages 13-17 (in addition to the above)
 
            Do most household cleaning by themselves
            Wash windows
            Help with spring cleaning
            Prepare meals on their own
            Help with grocery menus and shopping. 
            Babysit younger siblings for extended periods

  For great ideas on chore charts to motivate your little helpers visit:
 
            www.handipoints.com
            www.myrewardboard.com
            www.printablechecklists.com