How to Get Your Children to Help with the Chores

Now that summer is upon us and our children will be home more often, I thought it would be a good time to talk about getting some much needed help around the house.

I’ll share with you some ideas of what chores children can do at what age and give you some tips on organizing them and getting them done!  Hang in there, mamma! Help is on the way!

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Also, I have created a free Marriage Communication Masterclass for you! This class is for you if you want to stop fighting with your husband and feel like you are on the same team.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to A Life Designed.
 
My name is Tina Haisman. I teach busy moms how to get everything done and still have time and energy for themselves. My passion is for helping women create more heart-to-heart connection with their husband and children so they can feel deeply fulfilled in those most important relationships.
 
The topic of today’s podcast is …
 
How to Get Your Children to Help with Chores. 
 
But before we get started I want to let you know I have created a free video on Communication in Marriage for you. This video is for you if you have ever felt like you can’t get through to your husband. If you feel like your husband never listens to you. If you lose your cool during difficult conversations. If you’re tired of fighting with your husband.
 
In just 30 minutes, this video will help you lay the foundation for healthy communication in marriage and teach you how to handle difficult conversations so you can feel more connected and like you’re on the same team as your husband. Visit the link in the show notes to access it.
 
Also I have a FREE private group on Facebook where you can come to get inspiration for your life. It’s called A Life Designed. I hope you’ll join us!
 
Now let’s Dive IN and talk about How to Get Your Children to Help with Chores. 
 
I thought this was an appropriate topic with summer starting and children being home more often. What a perfect time to review what chores you have them doing! And a great way to keep them busy in a productive way.
 
So, let’s jump in!
 
First I would like to share with you, in case you don’t already know that research from Harvard University has proven that children who do chores fare better in life. Meaning they are healthier, happier and more independent. That is our goal, right? To raise healthy, happy adults.
 
Experts say the reason for this is because doing chores gives children a chance to feel competent about something. It also makes them feel part of the family team. And we all know that teamwork is vital in life!
 
So, what kind of chores can kids do?
 
Let’s start with the littlest of our kiddos. Experts say our children can start helping when they are preschoolers. We can start them off with some basic tasks, like putting their toys away in the toy bin, and putting their dirty clothes in the hamper. Those are two easy tasks, right.
 
I know, for me, this was challenging, because sometimes there was pushback. And sometimes it just seems faster to do it by yourself. But in the long run, it’s really worth it to teach our young children to do these easiest of things by themselves. It helps them to see that we are all part of a team!
 
Once they get bigger and they are in elementary school, it gets more exciting! Now they can help us set the table or clear it. They can put dishes in the dishwasher. At some point, they can wash dishes too, maybe have them start with plastic ones.
 
At this age they can also dust end tables. And help clear clutter from the living spaces of the home. They can probably make their beds at this point, too.
 
In the bathroom, we can teach them to clean their sink, especially after brushing their teeth.
 
They can help with our pets at this age too – feeding them, giving them water and taking them on little walks. The older ones can scoop kitty litter or pick up dog poop in the back yard.
 
The older ones can also start helping with packing school lunches – this was a huge help to me. For some reason, I dread packing school lunches. I know it only takes 5 minutes, but, it just drives me nuts.
 
The elementary school kids can also put away their laundry. I can’t remember exactly what age I stopped putting laundry away for my kids, but it was a glorious day! Now I just place it on their dresser.
 
Next, let’s talk about the tweens. As far as the laundry, they can certainly help do it now from beginning to end.
 
And they are big enough to be able to vacuum, sweep and mop! Woohoo!
 
They can definitely be responsible for making their own lunches now.
 
And they can do the dishes after dinner. They can also clean the counters and stovetop.
 
I found at this age that my daughter, Alyssa was AMAZING at helping me with gift ideas. And wrapping. To me, those are super-helpful!
 
At this age, maybe even younger, I would have my kids help with mailings – like Christmas cards or things I was doing for work. They can apply stamps and mailing labels and help with office type tasks like that.
 
Tweens can also start to help take care of younger siblings.
 
Speaking of that, let’s move on to teens. Teens, of course, can babysit younger siblings. They can cook entire meals. They can be responsible for their own laundry. They can even run errands or do grocery shopping for you once they can drive. It can be very helpful having these budding adults around!
 
Next, I thought we’d talk about how to organize the chores. Of course, there are magnetic chore charts that you can buy for your fridge. There are also apps you can use like BusyKid OurHome and Mothershp. Those are just a few. There are many. Some are free, some are not. But it’s kind of a fun way to communicate about chores.
 
When Alyssa was little, like 3, I made her a chore chart on a posterboard. Since she couldn’t read yet, I took a picture of her doing each chore and glued it to the board next to each task. I hung it on the back of her bedroom door so she could see it easily. That’s a great memory now that I think about it!
 
So, some of the keys to successfully managing chores is that we

• Have specific assignments of who does what when
• Have a check off system so the kids can see what is expected and easily monitor their progress
• Consider if children will be paid or rewarded for their chores– that’s a personal, family decision. I don’t think there’s a right or wrong. But I would say that the younger children should have some sort of reward like a sticker or a treat of some kind to help entice them along until they are older.

 
Ok! That’s all I have for today, girls. I hope this was helpful. If you have any specific questions, please reach out to me!
 
If you would like to work on this with a coach, reach out to me for a complimentary consultation where you will get to experience what it’s like to have the full attention of an experienced life coach listening to you in a non-judgmental, compassionate setting.
 
We will take a look at where you are, where you want to be and come up with a plan to get you there. Just this conversation alone will give you relief from the challenges you are currently facing.
 
Remember to download my free marriage communication masterclass and don’t forget to join the Life Designed Community on Facebook!
 
Thank you! See you next week!