| Welcome to our monthly Spotlight on Five!
Making Chores Kid-Friendly
To help with the smooth running of a household, making some minor adjustments to your chores or cleaning-tools can help children develop their housekeeping skills.
Here are some things to consider when simplifying your chores:
Move plates, glasses and cups from an upper cabinet to a lower cabinet that younger children can reach easily and safely.
When replacing appliances, consider purchasing models that are easy to use, with simple controls.
Switch to safe cleaners. Vinegar and water in a small bottle and some microfiber clothes can be used to clean most surfaces.
Use kid-sized products. A shorter broom, a light-weight vacuum, and dust mitts all make cleaning easier and more effective for small hands.
Make chore lists that stay the same on most days, so that children know what to expect and can master some chores before too many more are added to their repertoire. This will give children a real confidence boost and can help them grow in responsibility for their daily work.
Spend some time teaching a new chore. Begin by demonstrating the chore; then, supervise while they do it. Once a child has mastered the chore, simply inspect the chore, and offer praise at completion. This is also a time you can encourage older siblings to train younger siblings on basic chores, and have them offer encouragement and praise as well. Don’t lose the habit of inspecting chores.
Children will quickly form poor habits if they feel no accountability.
Many children thrive on doing chores with others, but struggle with doing them alone. When possible, if you can’t do chores with them, try to at least be working in the same area so they do not feel isolated and alone in their work.
Take some time to de-clutter. Sort through unused toys and clothes, eliminating any the children have outgrown.
Consider paring down clothes to the actual amount a child can easily handle. The amount of clothes in your home can easily exceed the amount you can realistically keep neat. For each child, have four or five outfits for everyday use and a couple of special occasion clothes. For excess clothes you are keeping for future kids or “just in case,” simply store them out of the way. Put them in labeled bins in the garage or attic. When something is outgrown or is no longer usable, you can replace it with the clothes from the bins. Storing these in rooms that are easily accessible often means the bins are rummaged through, dumped, and added back into the rotation.
 |
| Malia Russell |
Finally, remember as you are looking for chores the children can do, remind them of what a great privilege it is to serve the family by doing work well and thoroughly. Your children will quickly adopt your attitude toward work; so be sure yours is one you would like to see them display.
Malia Russell is the blessed wife to Duncan, thankful mother to six children, ages one to twenty-four, a grandmother to one, and an author, conference speaker and director of www.homemaking911.com.
Take a look below at this month’s resources for additional ideas. Be sure to let us know how you organize your home and homeschool. Email Paul and Gena Suarez and share your story. We’d love to hear about it!
|
