Chore Training

I've had people ask me how I get my kids to do their chores in the morning. It's simple really. I've had to TRAIN them. When assigning a chore to a child, you can't just expect them to understand how to "do the dishes" if you haven't shown them. How would you like it if your boss at work asked you to complete a task and never showed you how to do it. It would probably take you a long time to get it right and that would be with asking many other co-workers how to do it. You may still not even have it right in the end. With children, it's the same thing! You have to show them MULTIPLE times how to do something and take time out of your day to train them and teach them the proper way. If you want the sink counter clean and dry after your preschooler has just washed his/her hands and made puddles everywhere, you need to "model" and show them how to clean up after themselves and what the final outcome should look like.


For instance, it probably took me 1 1/2 months to get Avonlea fully trained on her morning chores. Her chores consist of:

- getting dressed
- making her bed
- brushing her hair (not perfect, but she tries)
- brushing her teeth
- clothes in the hamper
- filling the dog bowls with food/water
- eat breakfast (she likes to help make it a few days a week)
- dishes to the sink

Some other chores throughout the day are:

- completing schoolwork with a good attitude
- eating lunch/dinner and dishes to the sink
- taking a bath (with help)
- pjs on
- brushing teeth at night


After breakfast, we turn on music and we set a timer for 12 minutes. When the 12 minutes is up, it beeps and I turn the tv on for a morning show (this is when I get my chores done and get dressed). I leave the tv on for the entire show and whenever Avy's chores are done is when she gets to join her brother (I'm helping him with his chores now...VERY basic) and watch the show. The quicker she gets done, the more of the show she can catch. There have been days when she doddles and doesn't catch any of the show. She still has to do the chores. This is rare though because she loves to watch her morning tv show. =)


As she does her chores, she pulls off certain cards on her chart and puts them in a bag (crossing them off...sort of). I put stars on the morning ones so she knows which ones are for morning. If she completes all chores with a good attitude, she gets a quarter. She likes to save up for certain things.


What are some of your chores that your kids do and how do you do them?