Toddlers and Chores: When, What, and How

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Toddlers just love to help mommy with chores around the house. So as soon as our son was able to walk, we gave him his first daily chore: put his clothes in the dirty clothes hamper. We wanted to teach him responsibility, as well as helping is just part of living in our house. Everybody must help.

choresWe chose to start chores early in his life so that he will be in the habit of it instead of trying to enforce this rule when he is 9 or 10. Not only that, but it’s nice to have a little extra help around the house!

Here are a few practical ways to keep your eager little ones engaged in chores:

Establish routines – Chores will become habits if we do them at the same time each day/week. Setting and sticking to routines help make these behaviors become automatic.

Create a chart – Create a chore chart for the kids to see each day. Let the child put a sticker or check off each choreas it is completed. It might be just the little bit of needed encouragement.

Be encouraging – Encourage your child and tell him or her thank you. Let kiddos know that they are mommy’s best little helper and how big they are. Explain to them why you are cleaning and let them know you need their help because they are so big/strong/smart, etc.

Make it fun – Put on some music and sing your way through the chores. Let your children use the cleaning tools they enjoy. My little guy loves the spray bottle. So add a bit of water, hand him a towel, and let him clean whatever he can reach.

How do you keep your kids engaged when it comes to chores?

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