Take turns with the chores

[CyrilSebastian]

Do your children take turns with the chores?

 

[Xantippe]

No, but I can see how it might make children less hostile to chores, if they don’t have to face the same one every week. Plus they learn more jobs.

My main chore throughout my tween and teen years was dishes. I hated them and I had huge fights with my mom over the job.

On reflection, I think we could have avoided a lot of grief if I had had a choice of chores.

 

[MessyMom]

Yes. One week they do one task, next week they move to another one. Since it’s only two kids doing that right now (the younger two are doing very basic stuff right now), it’s pretty boring anyway, but the goal is for them to learn all the tasks needed to maintain a home, so on that end we’re doing well. I suspect when all four are able to at least do an okay job of a task, then it’ll be better cause they’ll have more change.

 

[bitterhope]

We rotate chores every two weeks. We have a schedule that the kids follow. On the 1st and 15th they check the schedule and change to the next job on the list. All 8 are on the schedule even the little ones that need help (or more honestly need mom to do the chore) and they get a check if their chore is not done properly with a good attitude. The little ones get a check if they don’t “help” mom. They kids like switching regularly and all the chores are learned from a very young age. We don’t give allowance, but the kids that do a consistently good job with their chores get additional privileges and the ones that get checks lose privileges.

 

[Nelka]

We rotate chores every two weeks. We have a schedule that the kids follow. On the 1st and 15th they check the schedule and change to the next job on the list. All 8 are on the schedule even the little ones that need help (or more honestly need mom to do the chore) and they get a check if their chore is not done properly with a good attitude. The little ones get a check if they don’t “help” mom. They kids like switching regularly and all the chores are learned from a very young age. We don’t give allowance, but the kids that do a consistently good job with their chores get additional privileges and the ones that get checks lose privileges.

Cool. What are the privileges? Staying up late, going to bed early?

My children are too young but they will have something to do when the time comes.

 

[bitterhope]

Cool. What are the privileges? Staying up late, going to bed early?

My children are too young but they will have something to do when the time comes.

It really depends on their ages and what they like doing. All my kids are very different, so for one of my girls it might be going to dinner out with me, just the two of us, and one of my boys it might be spending an hour building a world war 2 battle field out of toy soldiers and Legos. The teens tend to want a friend over to spend the night (and trip to the mall). For the littlest ones they usually choose their favorite movie to watch after dinner. Our youngest just turned 1 so she doesn’t really do anything yet, but she is starting to wipe the floor as I mop and she LOVES “loading the dishwasher”–more accurately she unloads it while I attempt to load it. The first assigned chore we give is at age 3. From age 3-6 the kids are in charge of collecting dirty clothes and carrying them to the laundry room and for putting all shoes into the back closet. Before age 3, they just help me with whichever chore is “assigned” to them. From age 6-9 I help them out with harder chores (dishes, bathrooms, kitchen) but they are able to handle easier ones (living room, dining room, picking up yard). Age 10 and older they are pretty capable of independent chores completely. I judge the work based on the abilities, and sometimes the kitchen is recleaned by me during the 2 weeks 10-13 year olds have it, but it counts if it’s as good as they are able. If they get 3 or more checks they lose TV and Internet. More than 6 checks they also have extra chores.