I don’t know about you, but I have been hearing and reading about how the kids of today aren’t developing the life skills they need to be responsible and productive human beings. Some people are bemoaning the fact that most schools do not offer home economics classes anymore. Where do you think kids should learn essential life skills? At home of course!
Why Kids Should Do Chores
There are many reasons why children should do chores including developing a sense of responsibility and a good work ethic, knowing how to follow a routine and building self-confidence which are all essential life skills. The author of this particular website notes that there is a difference between responsibilities and chores. Responsibilities are the routine tasks that should be done daily by each person without being asked such as brush your teeth, make your bed and put your things away. Chores are jobs that may require larger chunks of time such as yard-work, cooking or doing the laundry. Just make sure that what you ask your child to do is age appropriate and that you model and teach how to do the chore. Be patient, allow for mistakes, and praise profusely for a job well-done (or sort of well-done). Click here to read the entire article.
Summer Time and the Living is Easy
Theoretically, there is a little more time to get into the habit of doing chores during the summer. The Happy Housewife site says that your kids will feel like they are an important part of the family team when they are actively involved in household chores. By pitching in to help, first at home, and then hopefully, wherever they are, children will begin to develop not only a sense of belonging, but also start to understand the significance of teamwork. This site contains a printable age-appropriate chore chart as well as some ideas that might make daily chores more enjoyable. Check it out by clicking here.
The Chore War
I love the suggestions on this website. It gives ideas on how to take the “ugh” out of chores such as start the process when your kids are young and set appropriate expectations (not too high or too low). How about this one – take advantage of your child’s love of technology and get one of the many chore apps available these days. Just remember, in the beginning, chores are not a way to make less work for yourself. They are an investment with the wonderful dividend of spending time together doing a meaningful activity. Click here to see more.
