I don’t remember that I had to do much in the house when I
was a child. In a way I wish I had, because it gives you a good foundation in life.
I find it very important, especially for girls, that they are being taught house
hold skills from a young age.
Now that I am a single mum, it is also very important to get
the help from my girls. My girls can normally make a lot of mess. Especially my
youngest.
It is often the case that I have just tidied up somewhere and a few
minutes after she has arrived in the area it is as if a bomb has exploded. It is
as if you did not just spend a few hours tidying up. It can be quite frustrating and I am sure that a lot of other mums can relate to it.
I once saw in a tv program for single mums, a mum with four
kids who taught her kids to help out, because she saw them all as a team. That
really spoke to me. That is how it is. You are a new family, you are team with
your children and together you are responsible for everything going smoothly
in the house.
I’ve tried to get the same thing with my girls by asking
them to tidy up after themselves but also I started with a chore list for each
child.
I must say that it is been a while since I reminded them of
it and I really have to start with it again.
The funny thing is that the little one who seems to make the
most mess, is also the one who is the participating the most when you assign a
list of chores to her. She is the most willing to pick her task up and complete
it. It is so amazing, She will really make the time for it and will really make
an effort to do her job well and to complete it.
I believe that it is exciting (and
fun ) for kids to learn new skills and that is good for their self –esteem. It
really gives them a sense of achievement when they have completed their tasks ,
especially when they get a compliment about it or they get a treat or a small
amount of allowance after completing their chore list. But it is especially so important for their future.
So today I will share
with you he chore list from my youngest
daughter who turned 5 in February.
I’ve got some ideas from online and I have added a few
things to it as well.
This is her chore list:
1 X per week
Water plant
Take clothes out of the washing machine
Take clothes of the rack and sort them in piles
Hang up own clothes in room and fold up clothes and put in
drawers
Tidy up room
Every day
Make bed
Sort cutlery
After dinner:
Throw mess in the bin
Put plates in the sink
Wipe dinner table
She is capable of doing all of these tasks and I don’t think
it is a lot either, even though I must say that we’ve not gone through a week
yet on which she has done all of these tasks since I had started with the chore lists and
then kind of left it again.
But since I think it is important and it will really benefit
them in the future, I’m going to start this again soon.
God has put in me a desire to be a home maker and I would
love to start early with my girls in building in them a desire to be the
same. And together we can keep our home organized.
We have a long way to go but I have hope that I one day will be the home maker
that I desire to be and that I will be able to one day turn my girls in to little
home makers in the making.
All by the grace of God.
 |
| She sometimes wants to try to wash a few dishes. |
Do you give your children chores to do ? Does it work well for you ?
I would love to hear from you.
Love,
Comments