ReSPACED Portland

Professional Organizing Tips, Articles and Ideas

  • about
  • Services
    • Hands-On Organizing
    • Small Business & Office Organizing
    • Organized Unpacking
    • Organizing Consultation
    • ADHD
  • gallery
  • testimonials
  • press
  • blog
  • contact

5 tips for teaching your children how to do chores

March 18, 2014 by respaced

It probably makes sense that if you live in a house of, say, 5 people and you are the only one who cleans while the other 4 members seem to be the ones who make messes, your house will always be messy, no matter how much housework you do! Everyone in the family needs to pitch in to do chores. How do you get this started?

1. Make it a family rule that NOBODY sits around and plays while other family members are cleaning. Cleaning time is now FAMILY time! Doing dishes together, folding laundry together — these are great opportunities to talk with your kids and spend some valuable face-time together while getting an otherwise boring task done.

2. Start when the kids are very young, even if the amount of work your toddler can do is more symbolic rather than productive. Have your toddler hand you the white clothes to put into the laundry. Have her pick out her clothes from the clean laundry pile and put them into a pile. Find ways she can contribute and watch her beam with pride at how she’s “helping mommy.”

3. Teach your child the chore thoroughly before expecting him to be able to do it on his own. Here is how you teach a child how to do a chore:

You tell him how to do the chore.

You show him how to do the chore.

You do the chore together.

He does the chore by himself while you supervise

He does the chore by himself with you checking in only occasionally.

4. Set a timer to go off in the morning to remind you to do morning chores. Set another timer to go off in the evening to do evening chores. Each morning and evening chore time should take about 10-20 minutes for kids.

5. Praise your children for their hard work! Don’t pay them for doing housework (doing chores is part of what it means to be a family. The payoff is that they get to live in a nice house where they can find their toys and have clean clothes to wear.) Let them overhear you “bragging” to their grandparents about what good helpers you have!

Start teaching your children to help you around the house and reap the benefits of a cleaner house, children who know how to contribute, and more time to spend together as a family.

Follow by Email
Facebook
Facebook
GOOGLE
GOOGLE
PINTEREST
INSTAGRAM

Related posts:

The 5 essentials of organizing kids' school papers
Teaching kids to tidy up their rooms
7 tips for organizing bathrooms
How to organize art supplies when you don't have floor space for a cart

Filed Under: children

Meet Mary Jo

Connect

Contact MaryJo for organizing services at info@respacedpdx.com

Follow by Email
Facebook
Facebook
GOOGLE
GOOGLE
PINTEREST
INSTAGRAM

Sign Up

Sign up to receive my newsletter

Serving clients in Portland, Beaverton, Hillsboro, Lake Oswego, West Linn, and surrounding areas. Contact reSPACEd at 971-226-6055 or at info@respacedpdx.com

reSPACEd professional organizers for home and business | portland, oregon
Website Design by SimplyFine Design