How many things do you, as parents, do for your kids? When our kids were younger, we used to do almost everything for them, until we realized that they weren’t helpless without our help. As the kids got older their reasoning and capabilities increased rapidly. By stepping outside our comfort zone, we noticed they could actually do a lot more than we gave them credit for. By assigning them age-specific chores, we are teaching them to care for themselves, which will benefit their development in the long run.
Benefits of Giving Kids Chores
Giving chores to your kids has many benefits, not only developmental, but it also allows them to develop a habit that will last into adulthood. My wife and I agreed, that we wouldn’t offer financial compensation to the kids for doing their chores. We agreed, that our children would have to learn from us, we do chores without being asked and we do not expect financial compensation from doing them. We have have also explained to the kids that we are all part of a family team and as part of this team, we all have tasks and we shouldn’t expect financial compensation. We also encourage them to be proud of themselves for accomplishing their given tasks, which in turn helps develop their self-esteem.
Provide your kids with age-appropriate chores to encourage them to keep things clean and organized. You can guide your chore assignments as follow, however, don’t expect your toddlers to have the same tasks as your teenagers, or yourself:
- Preschoolers: brush hair & teeth, wash face, get dressed & put pajamas away, make bed, put AWAY TOYS, put clothing in hamper.
- Five to Seven year old: put away their belongings, dust furniture, help unpack & put away groceries, straighten drawers, dry dishes, empty garbage, fold put away laundry & put away, sweep floor, home work.
- Eight to Eleven year old: wash dishes, wipe kitchen clean, take out trash/recycling, clean & exercise pets, water lawn, vacuum rugs & furniture, help with meals, CLEAN BATHROOM, rake leaves & clean lawn.
- Twelve year old & beyond: change bed sheets, operate washer/dryer, clean out refrigerators, prepare complete meals.
We have a very similar chore schedule at home, however, it does change as the kids get older. You can print our handy & helpful chore chart by clicking on the image above or print the chore chart here. Do you assign chores to your kids? If so, I would like to hear about your protocol.