5 Simple Chores for Kids to Complete Everyday

by Joshua on February 8, 2012

The following post is from Joshua of Becoming Minimalist:

Source:Clogozm

Hey look, I get it. Kids and chores don’t always play together very well. Some days, it can be a downright battle to get kids to complete their duties around the house. I have two young children myself (9 & 5), and I know firsthand that getting kids to do chores around the house is often times easier said than done. But it’s a battle worth fighting. It teaches kids proper work ethic, responsibility, time management, and the importance of family.

Around our house, we have “daily” chores for our kids and “weekly” chores. For some parents, it can be so difficult to get kids to complete any chores at home that the thought of requiring daily chores may sound like too much to ask. But we believe there are a number of benefits to having kids complete their chores on a daily basis:

Chores are more likely to become routine when they are completed on a daily basis.
Most household chores take far less time when they are completed daily rather than weekly.
Children learn that life requires daily maintenance.
Children get used to living in an organized environment… and are more likely to desire it.
Children learn responsibility and the importance of caring for things they own.
Children begin to recognize that “cleaning up” is the last step of any project.
Children begin to quickly appreciate you and your daily sacrifice as parents (just kidding… though I do hope that comes sometime down the road).

With that in mind, consider encouraging your kids to Complete these 5 Simple Chores Every Single Day. They aren’t big, fancy, new, or impressive. They are just typical household chores that require our daily attention. But the more often we encourage our kids to see them as such, the more likely they are to develop these life-improving habits.

1. Make the bed. No hospital bed corners required. Instead, just put the covers and pillows back in place… and get on with your day.

2. Put the clothes away. Coats and shoes in the closet. Pants, shirts and underwear in the dirty clothes pile. Nothing more, nothing less. And nothing laying on the floor.

3. Clear/Clean the dishes. I used to consider cleaning the kitchen as its own unique chore. But my mindset towards the task changed considerably when I began to view it as just the last step of eating a meal. Prepare, enjoy, clean. Hopefully, involving our children in the process makes them realize the same.

4. Tidy up the bathroom. Bathrooms can get so cluttered. Too many people with too many tools working in too small of a space. We’ve found a simple remedy: tidy up every time you leave. Hygiene products return to their home. And little messes/misses are wiped up before you leave.

5. Put the toys/crafts away. Every toy has a home and every toy should find its place back there at the end of the day. Granted, there are some extenuating circumstances that may impact the completion of this every day, but as a general rule: if you used it, return it.

You’ll notice that none of these chores take too much time or effort to complete if done right away. But that’s the point… most household chores don’t if we direct daily energy towards them.

What chores do you require of your kids on a daily/weekly basis? (Be sure to include your kids’ ages in your comment.)

	Joshua Becker inspires and encourages others to live with less on his blog, Becoming Minimalist. He has also authored two e-books, Simplify and Inside-Out Simplicity. But more importantly, he loves his wife and two small children.

http://www.momdropbox.com Audrey

Good list! For my 4 year old, we ask that he put his dirty clothes in the laundry basket, put his dirty dishes on the kitchen counter, and pick up his toys. Cleaning up certainly isn’t something he would do if we didn’t ask him to, and I’m hoping it becomes more routine as he gets older.
http://twitter.com/SE_Ash Stacy Ash

My 4 year old gets the mail every day. She thinks it is fun. I like not having to go out in the cold. Win-win!
Ramsie N PA

You mean, leave the world a better place than you found it, even at home? Huh. What a concept! Thanks for the awesome article. Hee hee, someone has some chores coming his way. Except hopefully he won’t notice! )
http://joyceandnorm.wordpress.com Joyce and Norm

My girls (2yo and 5yo (tomorrow!)) don’t see chores as chores. They think everything is a game. I think it’s something that we have to model for them. I love keeping things organized and neat, so I’m happy about doing a load of laundry. It’s not glamorous work, but doesn’t it feel nice to put on clothes that don’t have stains on them? =p For the laundry, they love to put stuff into the machines and turn it on to watch it spin. Afterwards, we have the sorting game and then after everything’s folded, we have the stacking game. They are a little young for dishes, but the older one helps with plastic stuff sometimes. And if there’s something they don’t like doing, I give reminders that if they don’t want to clean it up, then they probably shouldn’t dump it out. If they do really want to play with it, then I tell them they have to clean it up when they’re done. At the end of the night, we do a ‘quick clean’ before brushing up. For younger kids, I feel like it’s easier when you give them a specific ‘job’ to do….like “Melody, you pick up all the pink pieces, and Emily, you pick up all the yellow ones.” Or “Everyone picks up 8 things.” (It’s even more fun when you say “quick clean quick clean” while you’re cleaning. And high fives afterwards is fun too. Don’t you wish someone would high five you everytime you did a chore?) When they have trouble finding something, I remind them that if they had put it back where they got it the last time, they would never have to look for it because it’ll always be in the same place. Okay, I’m not even sure if I’m on the right topic anymore. =p
http://aboutone.com/ Tara from AboutOne

My 4-year-old has 4 jobs each day. She sets and clears the table. She brushes her teeth. (I know, that shouldn’t be a job, but it used to be a huge fight every night. Now that it’s a job, she does it willingly.) She feeds the cat. Lastly, she is supposed to clean up her toys and crafts. This is the one that is often left undone. I’m not exactly sure how to encourage her to clean them up without actually getting rid of them. It’s a constant struggle at our house.
Rana

My kiddos are 8 years old I have boy/girl twins. I made up a checklist for them for everyday when they get up in the morning: make bed, wash up and brush teeth, get dressed, eat breakfast, pick up toys and clothes if they didn’t the night before. I gave them each a clipboard to put their checklist on.
http://twitter.com/AmyMetherell Amy Metherell

My 5yo just begged me to show her how to clean the toilets. Since I don’t use chemicals I figured it would be OK. She did all 3, so I’ll let her do this every week. She also does the dusting, baseboards (with a sock). My 8yo cleans up the dog poop in the yard and cleans the kids’ bathroom vanity each week. They both put their dishes in the sink and drinks in the fridge after each meal, make their beds each day, put their shoes/coats/bookbags away, strip their beds each week (so I can launder the sheets), and put their clean folded laundry away each week.
Chrys S.

My kids are grown now, but we had a system from the time they were 2 years old and that’s when they begun making their beds. We used a chart with starts or pennies and that made it fun for them plus it gave them a sense of accomplishment and self-worth. We added things as they grew older and eventually it was habit for them and we took away the charts. They didn’t receive an allowance for making their bed, doing the dishes, etc. during this time because they are contributing to the family home and no one pays mom to do these things, right? For their money, they could volunteraly do other things, mow, wash the car, and my youngest daughters’ favorite, iron the family clothes, etc. They are all very productive now with families of their own and are teaching their children to have good work ethics. This has prepared them for life.
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Daffymommy

I have a 5 yo boy and a 2 yo girl. They both make their bed, clean their rooms, clean up after every meal (includes scraping the food into the trash and putting the dishes in the sink), and clean up any spills or dropped food, everyday. My 5 yo also waters the plants, helps with the garden when in season, and help empty the dishwasher. Both of them, (mostly the 2 yo because she doesn’t go to school yet) will help put the laundry into the dryer, and they both like to “help” me sweep the floors. Then my 2 yos chores are to dust the furniture and to wipe down the kitchen table after every meal or painting session.