I am a huge proponent of having kids help around the house. My husband and I both work full time and need all the help we can get. I don’t make my kids responsible for what parents should be doing, but feel that since we all live in our house together we all have to help out and can be responsible for our own things.
As my kids get older they are in school for longer, so it’s important to me that their school-work comes first and chores come second. Here’s how we do chores in our house:
During the week (Monday through Thursday) the kids are responsible for regular kid stuff- getting ready for school, doing their homework, brushing their teeth, etc.. I have these charts hung up in our kitchen and in our upstairs hallway as a reminder of what they have to do.
Morning Chart:
Evening Chart:
Friday afternoon is when we all help to straighten up the house and get ready for Shabbos. My kids get out of school early, are home by 2pm and generally don’t do homework that day, which allows them time to help out. Here’s what they are responsible for doing:
My kids prefer to divide the chores among themselves, so I don’t usually get involved… until I hear arguing. But for the most part they are able to divide them up and execute. They are motivated, because they can only play their video games after they finish their chores. When they tell me they are done I walk around and make sure they did everything to my standards.
On the topic of standards I do want to mention that my standards are age appropriate. If I want my kids to set the table, then it’s not always done the way I would prefer. Sometimes they use the wrong napkins, sometimes the table cloth is lopsided. I look the other way for the most part. If it’s something that has real impact, then I work with them to correct and perfect.
On Sunday our focus is preparing for Monday and every other week we prepare for our cleaning service, who come on Tuesday. The kids are responsible for cleaning up their toys in the basement and they each have to clean their room (which includes putting away their laundry – read more about my laundry routine).
We started this routine a while back, but it has evolved over time as my kids got older. They sometimes complain about it, but realize that we are a family and we all have to pitch in. I think it also teaches them that they are responsible for their own things and if they leave pencils on the table, they need to put them away. We don’t have a secret fairy that comes to clean every night… oh how I wish we did!!
Print your job charts on colored cardstock, laminate, and hang everywhere!
How do you do chores in your home?
Until next time,
Shaindy
