Involving children in household chores – the best practices

As parents, you probably dream of your child growing into a successful, happy and responsible adult. But in order to become responsible adults, children need to start learning their responsibilities at a young age. Children need to be gradually taught about the realities of life. As much as you want to, you cannot continue protecting your children and pampering them. They need to become rough and tough and need to be able to deal with difficult situations.

A child is a clean slate and apes exactly what he sees his parents doing. Kids learn from the examples their parents set. Children don’t do what their parents ask them to; on the contrary children do exactly what they see their parents do. If you wish to inculcate certain habits in your children, then they need to see you do the same. If you really want your children to grow up to be humble, dignified adults, then it’s essential that you implement a tidying routine that involves your kids.

Involving children in household activities at a young age has proven to turn them into mature, dignified and humble adults. It teaches them teamwork, responsibilities and organization. This involvement of children in daily chores also has a fabulous way of bringing the family together. The question now - what is the right age to start involving the kids in chores? Ideally if a child has reached the stage where he or she knows that a particular object has to be put in its specific container, he or she is ready to chip in to the household chores.

If you make it compulsory for your children to clean up immediately after their playtime, you are instilling a habit in them that is going to make them understand the importance of orderliness and being systematic. By instilling this habit in to your child’s life at a young age, you can trust that he or she is never going to create a mess and leave it around for someone else to pick it up.

Besides the ‘obvious picking up your toys and putting them in the right place’ routine, there are other aspects of household chores and cleaning that children can contribute to as well. Cleaning up spills, dusting and setting the dining table with cutlery and plates for dinner time is also a great way for young children to begin learning their household chores and duties. Small children feel a sense of pride and accomplishment when they are able to assist their parents in household activities, which encourages them to participate more often.

You must however keep in mind that young children are not going to have the same efficiency as an older child or an adult while your children help in conducting chores. But don’t lose your patience and encourage them so they can gradually improve their skills.

If a child is taught the importance of cleanliness and organization at a young age, he will be able to implement the lessons as an adult in other areas of his life. It is a proven fact that a child who implements organization and neatness at his home is able to further leverage these qualities throughout his educational career.

There are millions of adults who are messy, disorganized and always in a state of disarray. A major contribution to such confusion and disorder is lack of guidance at a young age. As a parent, you love to spoil and pamper your children and feel awful involving your young children in household chores. But what most parents don’t realize that lack of discipline and organization at a young age results in a messy, confused, disorganized and often terrible adult life.

Here’s another excellent benefit of involving your young ones in daily household chores. As they get older and reach adulthood they will not be dependent on others to get their chores and work done. It creates a sense of self-reliance and independent thinking in the child. Adults who are dependent, needy and unable to take charge are often products of ‘lack of training in their childhood years’.

A great way to make your child enthusiastic about participating in household chores is to set a specific goal for them and on completion of that goal, give them a reward. Now keep in mind that the act of rewarding your child has to be done in a very diplomatic manner. The child should not be under the impression that he is being bribed to complete the house chores. The whole process has to be done in a tactful way so that the child learns to enjoy what he is doing as opposed to doing it out of greed.

A great way to get your child excited about participating in household chores is to ask him what chore he would like to do. Begin with giving him that particular chore and gradually include additional chores to his task list. Make a proper chart or list of chores that your child has to complete. As he gets older, you add tougher and complex chores to his list. Besides giving a list of chores to complete, you also need to monitor your child’s progress. If you find that he is getting bored, modify his list and make it more to his liking.

Involving your kids in household chores is one of the best practices you can adopt as parents. Not only will it turn them into responsible adults and you into proud parents, but also make their lives easier as they grow up.