Kristen Welch

We are THAT Family

WFMW: Family Chore Chart

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I’m a work-at-home mom. I admitted a long time ago, I need help with household chores. Everyone usually pitches in to clean, but in our effort to stop some of the entitlement that has crept into our home, momma made a family chore chart.

And all the kids groaned. Parents high-fived.

My kids have been doing their own laundry since they turned eight years old. My son can (almost) mow the law himself, my daughter is a great babysitter and my youngest feeds the pets. We handle their rooms differently than we used to. It’s always been a battle. (In other words, I have heart palpatations in messy rooms). More than six months ago, I decided not to make my kids rooms a battleground any longer. Once a week, we expect it to be cleaned, clothes off the floor, beds made clean. It works for us.

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I really didn’t add much to their “workload” on the chore chart. I mainly created it because I felt like we needed more structure to cut out the debate of who did what last. I also decided it’s time my kids help prepare our meals. It’s great one-on-one time and it teaches them something they need to learn. Here’s where I insert a picture of my youngest covered in pancake batter “helping” me, but I was too busy cleaning it up to take a picture.

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Getting kids to actually do the chores is often half the battle. We have found the AB plan to work well for us (usually.) B (something fun–free time, screen time, treat, etc) doesn’t happen until A happens (chore or whatever you’ve asked them to do). The key is not repeating yourself a million times (I’m still working on that).

There’s just something special about men doing dishes.

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For our chore chart, I wanted something that could be easily filled in. Here are some great printable ideas:

It’s working for us, so far!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. I love the life skills afforded by teaching my little ones to do chores. Glad to see it works for older ones, too! 🙂 Thanks for hosting the link-up this week, Kristen! I offered my favorite graphic displaying the differences between herbal preparations… and also a few favorite spicy recipes.

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  3. Your family sounds a lot like mine ha. My parents ended up giving up on us, my brother’s room has not improved but mine has hahah. They will grow up and appreciate a clean room. Thanks for hosting!

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  4. way to go, kristen. i’m a public school teacher (middle school) and you would be AMAZED at how many kids have NO responsibility at home. i can pick them out quite easily. i had a chore chart growing up. and remember doing laundry when i was so little my twin and i had to work together to achieve getting the clothes from the washer to the dryer. one of us would climb up on the washer and throw the clothes down to the other:) i love when at baseball games one of mine slides and the moms say, “Oh, no kendal, you’re doing laundry tonight!” and i reply, “Nope. He is. Great slide, son!”

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  6. This is so timely! I literally spent about an hour perusing the internet yesterday for some help on chores and chore lists, but they all seemed to be geared toward parents with little guys. Thanks for posting this today…I needed it!

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  8. I started chore charts this summer after reading about them through various blogs, and friends encouraging me to after success with their kids. HOWEVER to save on paper cost and not have to print off new charts every week. i printed a blank chore chart and then placed it in an old 8×10 frame (or cheap one from the dollar store). we then use dry erase markers to change chores around and places X’s on the “chart” when chores are done. at the end of the week you can wipe the “chart” clean and start over without have to print the charts all over again!

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  9. I love it! I’m tempted to do a chore chart too just so we don’t have to negotiate every day, but I guess that’s part of learning how to keep house, deciding what you don’t mind doing and what you’d rather someone else do! I really like that you do the “B happens after A is done” thing instead of $ or rewards — in my experience free time (B) is the benefit of efficient housekeeping (A) and living in a clean home is its own reward.

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  10. You are wise. There’s no way to get everything that needs to be done, without everyone doing something. My rule has always been, “If mom’s doing chores, everyone’s doing chores.”

    We’re coming to that time of year when homeschooling families are thinking about what they’re going to teach next year, and my articles are numbers 237-239, addressing how you can teach your child to write — well and successfully — without having to use workbooks or grammar sheets. Knowing how to express oneself in writing is a critical skill, and it’s one that we can all be good at. (And yes, it’s okay to end a sentence with a preposition.) (It’s also acceptable to begin a sentence with a conjunction.)

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