When it comes to educating your children, it is usual to feel confused. Sometimes you do not know if you are being too strict or forgiving to them. Therefore, it is logical that you ask yourself what are the chores that your children should have at home. We give you some tips that will help you answer it.
All children must have a participatory role when carrying out household chores. However, these tasks will vary depending on the age and abilities of the child. It is important to teach them at an early age the value of responsibility and help them grow with a certain autonomy and independence.
Chores
One question that all parents ask themselves at some point is: what chores should children have at home? And the answer to this question probably does not surprise you, and it depends on nothing more and nothing less than how old your child is.
You can not make your two-year-old son do the same tasks your eight-year-old does, since you’re either spoiling the older one too much, or you’re being too demanding with the little one. Responsibilities should gradually increase as they grow.
When they are smaller, with two, three or four years, they must be assigned simpler tasks; how to pick up toys thrown in the living room, teach him to eat alone, teach him how to brush his teeth, tell him to help you tidying his clothes in his closet, etc. Any task that is easy to execute but that helps our children to start developing the value of responsibility.
As they grow up, when they are about 6 years old, they should be assigned more complicated tasks. These can be, for example, to tidy their room, clean and dress themself, prepare their backpack for school, or even prepare the sandwich for the snack – always under your supervision -.
When the child is older (from 10 years old and up) you can assign tasks that really contribute to the home’s well-being, such as setting and clearing the table, picking up the dishwasher, etc.
Remember that this never should seem a punishment under any circumstances, as a negative association to collaborate at home can be later translated into a complete rejection of such collaboration. We must make sure they understand that these chores must be done to improve coexistence at home.
Parents attitude
When we teach our children the sense of responsibility, we must bear in mind that our attitude will also influence them during their learning.
First, it is important to make it clear that you are the parent, and that he is the son. You have to demonstrate authority, without falling into being too strict, as this can cause your child to feel too pressured.
It is necessary to be communicative with your child. Ask him how his day has gone, show that he will always be able to trust you and that he can count on you, and teach him to reason when he makes a mistake.
Finally, be patient. No one is born knowing, and it is possible that your child has different tasks and actions that may be difficult for him. Be understanding, and above all, motivate them to improve every day.
Benefits
Thanks to all this, your child will learn to be an autonomous and self-confident person, which will help him to overcome all the challenges that come his way throughout life, and of course, he will be a responsible person.
In addition, a little help with household chores will be nice for you, and you will strengthen relationships between your family members.
Raising a child is always complicated and creates a thousand doubts, but it is necessary to instill in them from a young age the value of responsibility, respect and trust. After all, the most important thing for parents is for their kids to grow up happy and healthy.
