Assigning household chores to your kids is a great and practical way to involve them in home activities, teach them new skills, and develop their character. After all, chores are inevitable and are part of our daily lives. 

If you have a toddler and feel that your child may not be ready to take on some chores at home, you might be surprised at what your toddler can do. As early as two years old, you can already teach your child simple tasks through modeling and consistency.

If you have preschoolers and older kids but failed to train them in doing household chores. Or perhaps, there are struggles to make them follow and do the tasks. You can assess the kind of chores that you give them.

The key here is giving them house chores that are appropriate to their age and development stage. Giving them less or too much for their current stage may not be beneficial to them. Worse, it may cause them to have resentment over the tasks or even doubt their capabilities.

Let's go over some of the benefits your kids and the family can get from assigning household chores to your kids.

Benefits of Age-Appropriate Chores for Kids

1.     Develops Gross Motor and Fine Motor Skills

Household chores require lots of movement. Those little muscles get their workout as the kids do their house chores. Arms get stronger from washing the windows; fingers get exercise from pinching the clothespin, and hands practice it's grip as they pack away their toys.

2.     Builds Self-Esteem 

As your kids develop mastery of the tasks assigned to them, they build their self-confidence and self-esteem. They become witnesses to their capabilities and things they can accomplish independently. When they have self-esteem, they will be more receptive to take on more challenges and will tend not to back off from new ideas and experiences.

3.     Develops Sense of Responsibility

Delegating a house chore to your kids can teach them about responsibility. They will learn and understand that they need to accomplish their tasks, and that there are consequences if they don't do it. 

For instance, if they skip washing the dishes, the plates are harder to clean because the food scrap stick more or pests might appear in search of food scraps. 

4. Teaches the Value of Hardwork

When kids do the chores themselves, they realize the effort needed to keep the house clean. They also recognize that simple steps like packing away immediately after playing or putting soiled clothes in the hamper can help maintain the cleanliness of the home. Eventually, they will become mindful of their actions and their clutter.

5.     Teaches Discipline

Consistency is essential in doing household chores. When kids learn the tasks and the schedule and its purpose, they accomplish it accordingly. Unconsciously, they develop the habit and the discipline to perform the tasks even without being told. When the tasks become a part of the routine, there will be fewer or no struggles at all. 

6.     Develops Organization skills

When you assign your kids' house chores that involve sorting, they learn about categorization. They learn that utensils belong to the kitchen drawer, socks are rolled and put into the boxes, or that their toys belong to the toy bins. They will eventually realize that by keeping things organized, it is easy to find items when they need them.

Apart from learning how to organize home items, they will learn to apply organization principles on their time, schoolwork, and other activities. 

7.     Invokes Sense of Belongingness 

When the kids have assigned tasks just like the rest of the family, they feel they are part of the team. They feel satisfied to be also contributing to the family through their time and efforts. 

8.     The effort is shared among family members

Since the household chores become a shared responsibility, the workload is distributed among the family members.

Isn't the list of benefits motivating? We are sure you want to reap these benefits and want to start giving your kids some household chores.  Before you do, here are six tips for you to help you introduce and delegate tasks to your kids.

Tips on Assigning House Chores to Kids

1.     Teach House Chores through Modeling

When the kids see you doing the chores regularly, they can learn through observation. If they see you have been consistent and diligent, they will most likely follow.   

Provide adequate guidance and instructions because they will need it, especially if it is something new to them.

2.     Do the Chores together 

Especially if you have toddlers or preschoolers, you can make the chores a bonding time for you.  Make it fun by singing songs or by making it a game.

3.     Assign Age-Appropriate Chores

The tasks that you assign to your kids must be appropriate to their age and development stage. You can start with simple tasks and build complexity as they gain mastery and experience. To guide you on what house chore to assign to your kids based on their age, you can use Tiny Steps Household Chores by Age Group.  

4.     Get your Kids Input

If you have several kids, you can hold a mini huddle time with the family. Discuss the chores and assignments to them. You can work out the details on the assignment, frequency, and even the rotation. They will feel more valued if you consider their inputs. 

5.     Use a Chore Chart

Chores chart provides kids with visual cues that can help kids remember the chores assigned to them. Also, you can use it to track their progress throughout the day. You can download the Tiny Steps Daily Chores Template.  You can laminate the sheet and write the assigned chores for kids to do. 

6.     Praise the Effort

Keep your expectations in check to avoid frustration. You should give your kids time to adjust and get used to their new responsibilities. Appreciate the effort they exert to motivate them to keep doing it and improve with time.

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