Teaching Responsibility

A while back one of our Facebook statuses was "What kinds of chores do you give your kids? (And what ages are they?)" The responses we got were as follows:

Jen said: "My son is 21 months, and he tidies his toys, stacks his books, and helps put his diapers in the cupboard whenever I do laundry. He loves helping!"

Jessica said: "My 5 yr old feeds and waters the dog and birds wipes down the table and helps clear the table after dinner. My 3 yr old picks up toys puts dirty clothes in the laundry cleans the lint trap etc. They are great helpers."

Deborah said: "My 2.5 year old helps set the table and clear it. She helps with her toys. She tries to help with sweeping."

And we can't forget what Krista had to say: "A's primary job is making laundry and she is on floor dirt patrol, she cleans all dirt/rocks/food/etc that she finds. We are hoping she will be as detailed orientated when she needs to use a broom or vacuum instead of her mouth. She's 10 months. : )"  


Kids as young as two (and even younger) are capable of helping out with things around the house as these few comments have shown. So what kinds of things do YOUR kids help out with?

I came across an article (yes, on Pinterest) entitled "The Key to Avoiding Entitlement." I encourage you to read it in its entirety, but the main message it was getting across was to stop doing stuff for your kids that they can do for themselves! Otherwise they are developing a sense of entitlement that won't serve them well as they get older.

What are your thoughts on this? Should kids - whatever their ages - be encouraged to do everything that they are able to do for themselves? Or is it still okay for parents to do things for our kids? It could be for a variety of reasons - maybe we just don't have time (or the patience) to let them do things themselves. Or maybe, quite simply, we WANT to do things for them.

In my personal experience with my own daughters (they are 8 and 10), they thrive on responsibility. Sure, this doesn't mean they won't complain about it from time to time - but I believe it serves a purpose to allow them to feel a sense of accomplishment and responsibility.

Two years ago - when they were in Grade 1 and Grade 3 - I stopped making their school lunches for them. I decided that this was a "chore" that they could take on themselves on a daily basis. I am happy to say that almost a year later (we started in March) this is still going strong. They do it all from start to finish - they get everything out of the fridge and cupboards, they make their sandwiches, put things in containers, and clean everything up afterwards. It took a little while for them to get into the groove but kids are quick learners and now it's like second nature for them. I have a list on the fridge that reminds them of what all needs to go in their lunch and they are good to go!

I have a ways to go yet to instill other regular chores in my kids - but I'm working on it! Dusting, vacuuming, emptying the dishwasher, folding laundry - these are all things that they are capable of doing. I don't think that kids need to run the household just because they can - afterall, kids should still have time to be kids - but instilling the value of hard work and responsibility are things they can carry with them as they grow up, leave the nest and start a home of their own.

(Our Snack & Sandwich bags are great for making lunches - and you can read my review of them here.)

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My name is Andrea (Andi) and I have the privilege of working part-time alongside Pam to help her with "a little of this and a little of that" as she strives to bring superb customer service to all of you through her Tiny TreeHugger business.

I am a 34-year-old mostly stay-at-home mother of two girls (aged 8 and 10) and have been happily married for 11 years. I am a Pepsi-loving, game-playing, guitar-learning, Nutella-craving girl [among many other things that make me ME]. I cloth-diapered my girls when they were babies and enjoyed the cost savings as well as the feeling of helping the environment - one cloth diaper at a time.

Thanks for checking in and I'll see you again both on this blog and on Facebook!