Kids and chores.

[chicken farmer meigs]

My daughter is 4 yr olds these are her chores:
feed the dogs at night
help collect the eggs every night
help fill up the chicken feeders
feed and water her bunny
make her bed every morning
brush her teeth twice a day
and set the table for dinner.
I think these chores help learn to do a good job and a since of pride in herself because she sees what she has done.

 

[Agilityscots]

My niece is 9 years old and that's far more than she has to do on a daily basis; she's responsible for setting the table for dinner, loading the dishwasher after all meals, making her bed, and feeding the cat and dog. I think this is a reasonable list; she's not allowed to slack off, yet she's also not expected to hold up the entire house.

My parents were slavedrivers when it came to chores, and used my sister and me (not my brother, of course) as a household work force. We were responsible for the entire kitchen by the time I was eight and she was five. We took care of our family's three dogs (feeding, walking, bathing, picking fleas off by hand (!), cleaning up dog poop, and eventually vet visits) and two cats (feeding, cleaning litter boxes). We were in charge of yard work, cleaning out the garage, cooking meals for the entire family, scrubbing floors by hand, dusting, and washing windows. We were doing all of our own laundry before we were ten, as well as most of our family's laundry. If it sounds a little like Cinderella, that's because it was.

Even though I've chosen not to have kids (surprise, no?), I always knew that if I ever did, my children would not be subjected to a neverending list of daily chores that are a priority even above school work. If we got caught doing homework before chores, we were beaten with a belt or a spatula and grounded. As we got a little older, our parents also began charging us for any "undone" or "incomplete" chores, as well as for any items that we left out behind ourselves (like clothing, books, etc.). My sister and I lived in the red, always handing over our babysitting money to get out of debt, but never able to get out completely. My mother could work for the IMF.

There's a happy medium in everything. Kids shouldn't be allowed to loll around all day like spoiled princes and princesses, but neither should they be used like prison camp labor. And no, I don't subscribe to the idea that the "busier you keep them, the better they'll be."

Amy

 

[GopherBoyFarms]

The homework is just a given..thats done first thing after school.
We dont pay for chores....no one pays me, lol
But what we are doing is he is selling the eggs from the chickens he takes care of. Up until this point we bought all the feed and bedding and DE, well now he has a book he keeps track of the eggs each day, and writes down who he sells eggs to and puts the money in an envolope. That money he has to buy the chicken feed with, and any other money he gets to keep. He is already ahead and we have 2 bags of feed in the garage. So he is learning how to have his own little business.

 

[MagsC]

My daughter is going to be 16 this month. She is responsible for her cats, her dog, keeping her room clean, putting away dishes.(I wash the dishes) and helping with various other chores that need doing as they come up. She has a "list" when she gets home. That and homework are what she has to get done before anything else.

 

[Acre of Blessings]

These are the chores that we all work together and separately on getting done.....

We each have a day that we do a chore then the next day another one does that chore that way it doesn't become a burden to one particular person.

Make Bed
Brush Teeth (Shouldn't be a chore, just brush the ones you want to keep)
Make breakfast
Read Bible and Study (Not driven to, just our choice to)
Feed and Water animals
Do School Work (we home school)
Mow grass (if needed)
Make Repairs around mini-farm (if needed)
Do Laundry
Sweep
Mop
Vacuum
Dust
Clean Windows
Clean Coops
Clean Goat pen
Tend to Garden (when in season)
Pull grass from flowers
Wash Vehicles
Have fun while doing all chores

 

[PineBurrowPeeps]

My son just turned 8 and he has quite the chore list as well, when you keep in mind that we have alot of living beings in our house and outside that depend on us for food and shelter it leaves alot of jobs to do.
My middle daughter is 6, they swap between them every other day who scoops out the litter boxes, or if they choose to they can eat scoop one box every day.
But yes we have the standard make your bed, brush your teeth, help feed animals, take dogs out to potty, groom dogs, they help do dishes, wash windows, sweep and vaccume floors, clean the bathrooms, etc.
They grumble and drag their feet but the way I tell them, I'm not the only one to make messes or use the toilets, eat the food, etc. Why should I be the only one to do the work?!
My middle daughter helps with womanaly chores as well, cooking, mending clothing, knitting, etc.
My son helps Dad take out the trash every Sunday.
Our little daughter picks up her own toys and she's not even 3 yet. Mind you, she doesn't pick them all up but she certainly helps and will do the job with direction.

Now when you compare all of this to the way I was raised it couldn't be more different. My mother did EVERYTHING for me, to the point where I got in trouble if I tried to make my own bed or fold laundry because I wouldn't do it "right".
This is also a woman who raised me on 3 meals a day that came from resturants and drive through windows. To this day she doesn't cook.
I taught myself to cook, clean properly, sew, knit, can, etc. And I told myself that my children would all know how to do these things. I recently met a woman my age (24) who couldn't make food unless it came out of a box or bag or needed to be microwaved! Nope, not happening to my kids....

 

[Acre of Blessings]

Quote:
1st paragraph --- sad

2nd paragraph -- Amen

 

[PineBurrowPeeps]

Quote:
1st paragraph --- sad

2nd paragraph -- Amen

I feel the same way!
And they think I am the weird one!!!!! Can you imagine?!
I hear all the time from my parents "We don't know where you came from!"
Sorry but if knowing how to care for yourself and your family is being "weird" it's a weird I'm more than happy to be!

 

[The Chicken Lady]

I'm not a parent, but I came from a house where I was raised to help with the family chores. Basically, I was expected to keep my room clean, do my homework, keep myself clean, and take care of my chickens, including buying their food and cleaning their coop (they were completely mine). I didn't have an additional chore "list", but if my parents asked me to do something to help out, I was expected to do it, with no questions asked and definitely no complaining or whining.

Things I had to help with:

- "Poop Patrol" -- running around the yard with a grocery sack and a shovel to clean up after my family's dog (I hated this because it was disgusting and it made me hate dogs...I will never own one)
- gardening -- hoeing, picking beans, pulling weeds, etc.
- mowing the lawn
- cleaning the kitchen (doing dishes, etc.)
- cleaning the house, including bathrooms, vacuuming, dusting, washing windows and floors, etc.
- laundry (folding and putting away anyone's clothes in the basket at the moment)

I always had enough time to do my homework and study. I got a weekly allowance starting in junior high ($5 a week) until I was old enough to have my own job and drive (16). After that, my parents said if I wanted money, I should interview for a job and earn my own money. As a result, I worked at McDonald's for a few years and learned a lot about what I DIDN'T want to do for the rest of my life.

My DH, on the other hand, was an only kid and was spoiled; he didn't have to do much at home beyond homework. His mom stopped by his dorm once a week during college to pick up his dirty laundry and take him out to eat. I had to teach him how to do laundry.

However, he is a neat freak (other than clutter from his nerdy projects), so he is good about washing dishes and helping me with things like ironing. He has taken on a lot more responsibility once we got married; his dad helps out around the house so I think that was a good model for him.

I think I'll pretty much raise my kids the same way I was raised. I want them to have more life skills than what my husband did, and frankly, I don't have the time to do it all alone for everyone.

 

[debilorrah]

Ok. Mine are 17 yo boy, 19 yo boy and 19 yo girl. The girl is the messiest piggiest thing I have ever seen, so we are constantly on her case. The boys do what we tell them, because teenagers have notoriously short term memory loss. It is usually clean the kitchen, take out the trash, yard work and clean the coop. Other stuff as necessary. they don't get allowance - they eat enough to make up for it.