What age is the right age to start doing chores?

[MomToTwoBoys]

My house drives me nuts on the weekends and with the kids out of school, I figured that they could help me with the smaller things (picking up their toys, throwing away papers, clearing the kitchen table, putting their clothes in their hampers, etc.). With even one of them helping me, I got the living room cleaned in an hour.

What age is too young to start chores?

[joyofsix]

My 20 mo old helps put things in the sink and trash. I start "real" chores about 3.

[MomToTwoBoys]

Yeah I figured that age five might be a little late, but it's better late than never.

I'd never ask him to carry a heavy bag of trash, but I would ask him to put the recycling stuff in the bins and put his clothes into the clothes hamper. He helped me clean up all of his toys, put his coloring pencils in their carrier and put the drink bottles on the counter. His reward? Going outside in the sprinkler for five minutes.

[AmyBoz]

Even my 3 year old "helps" with the chores. He likes to put out the forks when dd is setting the table, and he enjoys helping ds1 bring down the trash bins. Our washer and dryer are not next to each other, so I hand him the wet clothes and he walks them to the dryer.

As long as the chore isn't beyond them, I think any age is appropriate, as long as there is no consequence for doing it wrong.

[McD]

Wesley has little jobs that he is responsible for. He takes his dishes to the sink, throws away his trash, helps 'fold laundry', takes his dirty clothes to the laundry, and picks up his toys.

[MommyBliss]

My youngest is 4 and he even helps out with putting his clothes in the dirties, cleaning up his glass after a drink, picking up his toys. My older ones have set chores to help me keep the house running.

[jantana]

When my children were young (old enough to walk/stand) one of their chores was to help put clothes in the dryer and when the dryer went off they were to unload it into the basket. Now with a front loader washer, grandkids/foster kids help load it also. But you would be surprised what little things they can do.

[missyali]

My 3 year old has a chore chart ~ not so good with it. My six year old does too and she is wonderful, with reminders. I am thinking that any age is appropriate depending on how you instruct them, guide them through the process and have reasonable expectations for their abilities.

[elphie]

My kids are 9 and 10 so not much help with ideas for younger ones but I will say that they have pretty much always been somewhat responsible for their own messes. I helped them more when they were smaller but they were right there with me. Now that they are older they are still respobsible for their own things- their things have to be picked up in the playroom and living room daily, bedrooms cleaned weekly, they keep their own bathroom clean (which is also the guest bath), do their own laundry (wash, fold, and put away), rinse their dirty dishes and empty the dishwasher. Ds also takes the trash out once a week and dd sweeps the floor in the playroom once a week.

It seems like a lot but most of it are things that are directly theirs. All of these are things they've done in some form since they were about three or four- I did the laundry but they'd pour the detergent in, I would hand them clean dishes from the dishwasher that went into cabinets they could reach, etc. I think they need to know at a young age that everyone in a family works together to make things run smoothly but it must be done with guidance and patience in the beginning. It may actually make some of those chores take a little longer at first and will seem easier just to do it yourself but in the long run you will have responsible kids who help around the house without much complaining because its the way its always been done.

[frugalfranny]

Agree with all of it.......from the minute they understand language they can do little things. I found with mine that if you made it sound like it was a big help to you she was all for it......in other words.......lots of praise!
Makes for a more responsible child in the end. And from the time she could read and understand the 'basic concept' of money she helped me shop for the 'best bargain'...this helped keep the "I wanna's" down.

[MaryCarney]

Great thread!!

Let me add this - your children can do a LOT if you just let them!!! NEVER say to your child "You watch a video while mommy gets her work done and then we'll have fun!"

Let them help you, no matter how small the job OR how much longer it takes you when they 'help'.

One of my older daughters went to college with a girl who had never done laundry until she got there (and almost burned the dorm down trying to figure it out) and the other knows a guy from aviation school who was 'not allowed' in the kitchen by his mom (for fear he'd make a mess) and when she met him, he had never made himself a sandwich!!! SAD!

Oh, my motto with older children and their chores "Children do what you INSPECT not what you EXPECT"

[Siebrie]

My 10m dd helps me fold laundry: I sit her in the middle of the laundry pile and she waves socks about, folds them in her hands, tastes them to see if they're really dry, hides them under the table, etc. We have great fun!

[McD]

Siebrie, sounds like you have just as good of a laundry helper as I do!!!!

I think that kids are as smart as you let them be. I worked at a daycare where the two year olds didn't eat with silverware because the providers wouldn't give them to them. We started sitting plastic silverware by Wesley at mealtime when he started getting solids and he started using his fork at around 10 months (not well, but he tried!)

I think the same concept goes with chores. If we don't 'let' them do something, they will never learn. Does Wesley doing chores sometimes make my clean-up a little harder? Oh definitely, but at least he is trying!!!!

[Momto2Boyz]

We started something called "Behaivor Bucks" in our house this summer and it is working like a charm. We got the idea from my son's teacher who did it in school.

They get various behavior bucks for doing things around the house. Some examples are: they get one for brushing their teeth after meal, feeding the dog, putting clothes in the hamper, putting outdoor toys away, having their room cleaned up at the end of the day, going to bed without a fight, putting meal dishes in the sink after a meal, bringing in the mail, etc.

Then they get more for doing harder chores like rolling the garbage cans out to the curb, and thngs that are a little tougher.

They also lose one if they fight or if they get a time out.

Then, they redeem their behavior bucks for things. one for a popcicle, two for an ice cream cone, three to go to the pool, 10 to go out for ice cream, and 25 to go to the zoo. There are more things on the list, but I can't remember them all.

It has worked like a charm this summer. The boys do the things they are suppose to and I don't even have to ask them, becuase they want to go to the pool every day, and need to make sure they have enough bucks to do it.

We've tried chore charts before, but have never been able to stick with them, or I end up with stickers all over the house. But this is something they do completely on their own. I just regulate and make sure they "pay" for things we do! It's working out great for us this summer!

[geckoace]

my son is 5 almost 6 and he is responsible for cleaning his room, clearing dishes from the table, folding some of his laundry and his personal hygiene stuff.

my 16 mo old "helps" put him put toys away

i think 3 is the age where u can sort of give them a simple task and leave them to it, with reasonable expectation at 5 you should expect more and by 8 i think they should be getting down to business LOL