Making Household Chores A Family Thing

Anyone who has children knows how they can turn into tornadoes on two legs! Up until a certain age though, we unfortunately cannot rely on our little kiddos to pick up after themselves or to help out with the daily chores. But what happens when they reach an age where they are responsible enough to give a hand? Do your children contribute more in dirtying the house than making it shine? Here are some tricks to restore order in the management of the housework.

Be specific in regards to the tasks that need to be performed. Rather than saying "Clean your room", try something like "Put your toys in the trunk and place your books in the library".

For the repetitive tasks, put up a checklist describing the steps. For example, after a bath:

• I empty the bath.
• I wipe the water off the floor.
• I put away my towel on the towel rank.

Make your child choose himself 2 or 3 chores that he will be committed to perform for a little while. If the decision comes from him, he will collaborate more.

Give him some latitude as to when he can accomplish his tasks. Does he prefer cleaning his room on Saturday mornings or Wednesday evenings?

Do not require perfection, otherwise your child will lose all motivation. Additionally, try to avoid going over what he did and redoing it your way.

Create a "motivational sheet" (or table), with checkmarks and smiley faces, for the common chores. To steer clear of losing its effectiveness, make sure you fill it out on a constant basis.

If your child believes he is doing everything around the house, put up a list of your own tasks, just to bring him back to reality.

Have fun! Put some music on, crank up the volume, and dance along while performing the big chores!

Praise, render thanks, congratulate and recognize the efforts, even when the results aren't flawless.

Avoid rewarding the accomplished duties with money. Are you paid to do the laundry? In a family, everyone must pitch in and do their part. If you do give pocket money, do it independently of these responsibilities.