It’s almost a rite of passage, the childhood assignment of chores in childhood. As our children grow and mature, their chores become more involved, from making a bed to doing laundry or doing dishes and being in charge of recyclables. There are so many reasons having these chores is such a good idea, though the children themselves will strenuously disagree. Here are 7 reasons kids need chores.
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1. It Teaches Them Responsibility
Every child needs to learn responsibility, and the flip side of that is the reward of knowing that someone (you!) depends on them to do their chores, and do them well. When they’re small, of course, the responsibility will be light, and we’ll have to remind them of it, but as they grow up, we’ll give them more responsibility, and we’ll have to remind them less and less…
2. They’re Going to Need to Know How Later
Laundry, dishes, vacuuming, making beds, cooking — these are all things our children will need to know how to do when they’re adults, so why not start teaching them now?
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3. It Teaches Them Patience
Completing a task takes time, and patience, so when your children have chores, it will eventually teach them that helpful virtue. Granted, it may be frustrating for them at first, especially if it’s a chore they loathe, but patience is important, and doing chores can help teach it.
4. They’ll Take Pride in a Job Well Done
If you make a habit of praising your child when he or she completes a chore and does a great job, they’ll soon learn to take a lot of pride in a job well done. He or she will strive to earn your praise again and again, which, if you give them, will also lead to an increase in self-esteem. It’s a win-win!
5. Lazy-daisy!
No-one wants to raise a lazy child, and assigning chores helps ensure that little Jane or Joe will not only learn responsibility and patience, but he or she will also have to get up and move around. That means they will, for at least five minutes, be away from their precious cell phone, laptop, or video game.
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6. They’ll Discover Hidden Talents
If you assign your daughter to cook a meal once a week, or your son to sort the recyclables, they might just find that they love the chores, and Jane will become a famous chef and Joe will find a career in green energy. Why not? Doing chores exposes children to all sorts of activities they may want to pursue later, especially if they’re talented and interested. Are there professional dishwasher unloaders?
7. We Could Use the Help!
Let’s face it, sweetie. With a family of four and a full-time job, there aren’t enough hours in the say to do all of the housework and still get sleep. There’s just too much to do for one person, and besides, why should you be the one to do all of the work when you have a small army of helpers who can chip in?
With so many ways your kids (and your sanity!) can benefit from chores, why not grab a sheet of paper and start making a list of all the ways your little (or not-so-little) ones can start helping out? You wouldn’t want to deprive them of valuable life skills, would you? Of course not! What chores will you assign to your children, and why? Please share!
Top Photo Credit: A bunch of beans