By: Christina Dalton, MSSW, CSW
Summer is a great time of year to teach your children the value of chores. I think several of us reading this article probably had chores to do when we were children.
But today I think the average American child would pass out if you handed him a list of chores to be completed.
In the parenting classes that I teach I really embrace the way in which children see chores. The word itself, “chores,” is thrown out the window. It’s not even used. They use the word contributions. I like it. It has a nice ring to it. So it doesn’t matter if you have two in your house or ten, the idea is that everyone has contributions that they provide to make the house run properly.
One other very important piece to this puzzle is: no one gets paid for his or her contributions. You are a family and a family works together. Mom doesn’t get paid to wash the dishes or pick Henry up from soccer practice. Therefore, Sean doesn’t get paid to make his bed and take out the trash. The program does believe that everyone should get an allowance. But the contributions are done because they are your part of being a member of this family. I really do love this concept. It might have to marinate with you for a bit, but when you think about it, why are you paying your children to do things like keeping their room clean or picking up their stuff?! Hmmmmm…something to think about, that’s all I’m saying.
The last piece of the puzzle– When a child has completed all of his regularly scheduled contributions, then they are eligible to earn some extra cash. And only then. Henry has made his bed, kept his things picked up nicely and taken the trash out. But he really, really wants a new basketball. How can you help him out and help make him a more responsible, well-rounded, hard working individual? Easy. You offer a wonderful variety of other jobs that he normally doesn’t have the opportunity to take part in. Sometimes it’s hard to think of outside the box jobs, so I’m going to list just a few of my favorites that you might not have considered. Keep in mind which would be appropriate depending on age.
– Climbing on a ladder and cleaning out the gutters
– Cleaning out the microwave
– Cleaning the mini-blinds or the ceiling fans (good one)
– Taking everything out of the fridge and cleaning the fridge top to bottom
– Scrubbing the toilet (this is a favorite of mine…worth every penny)
– Weeding the flower beds
– Washing the windows
– Washing your car
– Going through their own toys and picking out ones to donate
One other option, depending on their age, would be to have them check with your neighbors, especially your elderly neighbors to see if they have any jobs that need to be done. Summer is a great time of year to teach your children new skills, respect and the value of a hard day’s work. I hope this makes someone’s life a little easier out there. Have a safe and glorious 4th of July!