When my kids were young cleaning the house was infuriating. Within a minute after I had picked something up, there was another mess. Finally, I realized if I gave them a cleaning assignment, even if they did a poor job, at least they wouldn’t be making a mess. So I gave my son the vacuum and my daughter a duster. It was the worst cleaning job I have ever seen, but it saved me a lot of time and energy. Years later they have become skilled cleaners, but it started when they were little.
We talk a lot about the sacrifices you need to make for your children. But what about what your kids can do to make your life a little easier? To save you a little time so you can spend more of it with them? Here are 5 things your kids can do for you.
Here are 5 things your kids can do for you.1. Budget
Kids as young as 1st grade can learn to both make and keep a budget. Ask the kids to figure out how much certain things cost, then ask them to participate in making tough choices.
2. Plan a Trip
Next time you go anywhere, even a day-trip vacation, assign planning duties to the kids. If you’ve worked with budgeting already, then include some financial parameters. Miles per day? Route? Sights and attractions? Schedule? All these can be kid-generated and planned. Any plan, of course, is always subject to review!
3. Clean
Chores are a huge part of family life. Asking kids to clean their rooms is only the beginning. Ask kids to help keep certain rooms and spaces (laundry room, guest bath, back porch, etc.) both tidy and clean. Maybe they could be in charge of setting the table for dinner! Teach them with our training tool Formal Dinner Place Setting.
4. Shop
Break the grocery list into manageable parts, then send the kids around the store to pick up the items. They’ll get better at this with practice.
5. Care for the Pets
Feeding, walking, cleaning, training, and more. It makes perfect sense for the kids to own responsibility and to be the primary caregiver for pets. Supervise and spot-check where needed, but pets are excellent responsibility teachers. Try out this training tool Pet Responsibility Chart to get started!
Bonus:
Develop a stack of index cards with specific responsibilities and step-by-step instructions. These can be changed out weekly, monthly, or simply handed out by mom and dad as needed. This way you can control the contributions and be more secure in the assignments.
Huddle up with your kids and ask, “If you could go on a trip anywhere, where would you choose to go?”