Homework
Clear Expectations
LaTeisha Williams, contributing editor
Chores usually do not elicit excitement from most children; however they are a great way for children to learn responsibility and discipline. Even young children can be taught to complete simple chores. When assigning chores, it is important for parents to clearly communicate their expectations to the child. After setting expectations, consistency and patience can help to ensure that doing chores does not become an uphill battle between parent and child.
Decide if your child is old enough to be given chores. Most children can handle starting one chore at about 2-3 years old. Of course, at this age, choose something simple, like putting toys away in a bin. It is easier to start early with the child doing one chore consistently and adding on as maturity increases, rather than waiting until the child is older and piling on many chores.
Make sure the chores are age-appropriate. Assign chores based on the child’s ability. Give chores that the child will be able to perform well with a bit of preliminary guidance. This will build confidence, and may even spark the desire to take on more complicated chores. Some excellent chores for children include:
- Tidying their room/playroom
- Sorting laundry
- Loading the washer
- Emptying the dryer
- Folding clothes
- Putting away clothes
- Loading the dishwasher
- Putting away dishes
- Hand washing dishes
- Taking out the trash/recycling
- Dusting
- Sweeping
- Vacuuming
- Cleaning the area at the table (including chair and floor, if necessary) after eating
- Making the bed
Explain to your child why they are given chores. Let older children and teens know that it is important to be responsible, disciplined, and to have a sense of pride about their home. Talk to them about how their chores are a necessary and helpful contribution to the family. Many times, young children are eager to do chores, at least at the beginning, because they like to help. Take advantage of this enthusiasm and let them know how much their assistance is appreciated and how pleasing it is that they can be counted on to complete their chores well.
Teach your child how to execute the chore. Use the MOP method.
- Model the chore for your child. Show them exactly how you would like them to complete the chore. At the beginning, this may require that you do the chore with the child to make sure they understand your expectations. For young children, turn the chore into something fun by singing songs or making it a game.
- Observe your child doing the chore. Make sure they are following your guidelines, but allow that it may not be perfect. The effort given is important; aesthetics will come with practice. Evaluate and determine if there is a progression to being able to complete the chore more accurately. Do not follow behind redoing what they have done because is it not exact! Return to the first step and model the chore for the child again, making sure the expectations are understood.
- Praise the child for a job well done. Give lots of encouragement; it can be very motivating, especially for a child that may be easily frustrated. Charts are a great tool for teaching responsibility and how to give the best effort. Putting all the chores on the chart by name (or picture, if not reading yet) and posting in a visible spot will let the child know what is expected without the parent always having to tell the child what to do. Allowing the child to mark off the chore or place a fun sticker next to it after completion will give a sense of accomplishment.
Communicate! Keep the lines of communication open with the child about how they are doing with their chores and what improvements may need to happen. Always praise their growing maturity in completing assigned chores well.