01 March 22 - Age Appropriate Chores for your kids

Why involving your kids in chores early in their life will be the best decision you make!

"Teach them young, and they will forever be grateful."

Dirty carpets, messy toys, dishes piling, and you know there is chaos with the chores. But no matter how many days you hit snooze on it, there will be a time when you will have to do the cleaning. But ask yourself,

"Can I involve my kids in teaching them a few chores?"

"What would they be able to do in a fun and enjoyable manner?"

Learning to do a few household chores is an excellent way to teach your little one's responsibility and bring in the sense of ownership. When this happens at a very young age, they will continue to carry out the duties they've undertaken for the longest of times.

But choosing the age-appropriate chores for the kids is a challenge that every parent faces.

"Is this task appropriate for my kid to do?"

"Is this too much of an asking? Will he/she be comfortable in carrying it out?"

The decision is a tricky one to make, but it all comes down to the child. Remember that every child matures at a different pace; there are no rules on what is appropriate and not. Here, we've created a list with all practical tasks based on age.

The list is only a guide on the most appropriate tasks that they could be doing based on their age. It is a practical layout of all the possible tasks they could be completed, and we hope that it would come in handy in helping your little one take on a few bits of responsibility.

To help you better understand, we've divided the chores based on the ages to help you understand better.

Ages 2 and 3

This is a beautiful time in the kids' lives. They've just gotten through the initial growth phase and now are actively walking, talking, and inquisitively exploring the world. Your little one is very eager to learn and see new things in life.

At this age, the chores need to be at an elementary level where they see accomplishment in carrying out a task. You can start by assisting them in making their beds, picking up their toys after playing, and leaving them in an organized place.

These personal chores can be coupled with seeking their help in feeding the pet or filling a water bowl. These tasks are easy and do not bring any strain or confusion in them. And more often, all of this task cannot be done by the little one alone – they need to be done with close supervision, every step of the way.

Make it a point always to applaud their efforts, and always do so with a smile. To keep them engaged, pick tasks that they could fulfill quickly and be pushed back and demotivated.

Ages 3 and 4

At the ages 3 and 4, your little ones are slowly grasping hold on life and are moving to a phase where they tend to become more independent and active. This is when they will start their early education, and it is an excellent time to get them involved in a bit more duties.

Earlier, you would have helped them tidy up the bed, but now you could see how they could try doing it independently. It wouldn't be easy to get started, so a little bit of help will be needed but eventually give the little ones the responsibility of the bed.

Next up, you could let them know that the toys that they use are their responsibility in the room. You can teach them always to put away the toys after playing in storage, which could be the starting point of bringing in more responsibilities at a young age.

You might need to bring in a little bit of supervision at this age but allow the little ones to figure out a few tasks themselves. This way, you help them think and follow instructions that could be helpful later in life.

Ages 5 and 6

As they age, it is only a matter of slowly increasing the responsibilities that they can take at home. This can be when you try to bring in a few family chores—nothing too stressful but little tasks that could be helpful in teaching.

Earlier, the little ones were only responsible for the beds, but now they can be more accountable for the entire room. Let them know that cleaning and tidying up the room is their sole responsibility. Please provide them with ample learning space to get it right. Even if they fail in the first few attempts, they will surely get it right come the 5th or 6th time.

Other family help can be to help vacuuming rooms, dusting individual rooms, and taking the effort in emptying trash cans.

Some tasks might need a little bit of teaching and observation, but they will master the art that you will not need to be of any involvement after some time.

You can also introduce them to a few garden tools, but handling them will always need to be done with close supervision, especially with the sharp tools.

Other tasks that your kids can take over in the home can be:

Being responsible for the pet, the food, and water

Wet mopping rooms

Cleaning the table (for at least a meal)

Help in preparing food

Assistance in cleaning the garden

Assistance in cleaning the attic

Make the chores fun and enjoyable!

While teaching the little ones the basics of taking up chores, always make sure they have fun doing it. Positive reinforcement always helps in inculcating good habits.

Try to see if you can bring in a little reward for the little ones when they finish a few tasks. For example, you can let them know that they will get an allowance if they take out the trash for one whole month.

If some task becomes physically challenging, see how you could help so that it doesn't become something that you would grow up hating.

Little things like that make chores much more fun and enjoyable. Use this as a guide and decide when you should introduce your kids to each of these activities.

The investment you make in teaching them the basics early in their life will be one of the best gifts you can give them.