"Chore Time, Sunshine! Teaching Kids Responsibility This Summer"

Finally!  Longer days,  sunshine, vacations…summer time has arrived.  The kids are home,  as parents we want our children to have fun and also teach them responsibility; after all,  they won’t be our little sweet babies forever.  Let’s talk about how we can mix fun with a little bit of responsibility for children of any age this summer.  

Not only do chores help keep things running smoothly, but they also give kids a sense of ownership and accomplishment. Plus, it's a great way to keep them off screens and engaged in real-life tasks!

Chores can be broken down by any age and categorized by indoor and outdoor chores.  Make it fun,  keep it consistent, and don’t forget to celebrate their efforts.  

Ages 3-5 

For smaller children you can have them help with matching socks while you are folding laundry. Work together to pick up their toys before bed-time, set up bins or containers that keep the toys stored while not in use to keep their room clean.  Do you have indoor or outdoor plants/flowers?  Let them water them,  this can create great conversation about how things grow with proper care 🙂

Ages 6-8

Elementary school age children can assist around the house by taking out the trash (with supervision) or if the trash is too heavy let them replace the trash liner when you take it out.  This age can assist with separating their laundry on laundry day,  they can also assist in putting their clothes away once they are clean,  this helps develop organizational skills. Have your children help with preparing snacks or meals,  they can set the table or wash the fruit and veggies while you discuss the days fun 

Ages 9-12

Getting our pre-teens to turn off the screens starts with making it fun, engaging, and being consistent. Helping wash the family vehicle is a great way to get exercise and get them outside.  Loading and unloading the dishwasher or washing the dishes a few times a week, sweeping the patio or porch, or washing, folding and putting away their laundry are all age appropriate chores that help build routine and develop responsibility and a sense of ownership

13+

Ahh the teen years,  by this age hopefully they have mastered the other chores and we can assign larger responsibilities to them which help build real-life skills.  Some ideas are deep cleaning bathrooms, mowing the lawn, organize garage and storage areas, help plan family outings/vacations, or even cook a family meal 1x per week.

This is not an all inclusive list, but just ideas to help get the children off the couch and moving.  Building healthy habits and responsibility starts early,  our kids will thank us for it.