Developing a Family Chore Routine

By: christineh Thursday May 25, 2017 comments

Coming home from work or spending the day running around town leaves little to no room in your schedule to spend cleaning the house. While it is your dream to have your home clean 100% of the time, that can’t happen without everyone pitching in. Nagging or complaining about it will only cause tension among family members. Instead, set up a family chore routine that will last you up until the kids are off to college.

Have an idea of how much time to spend on chores

Give your family a realistic time frame of how long their assigned chores will take. To do so, time yourself on how long each chore takes you. This way, the next time you ask one of your family members to vacuum the house, you’ll both now how quickly it will take. Arguments are less likely to happen when someone understands that a chore will only take a few minutes out of their day.

Create a fun chore chart

Your best bet to get each family member to chip in on household work is to create a fun chore chart that reminds kids what they need to complete each week. Make it eye-catching and place it somewhere where everyone can see it on a regular basis. Also, cross off chores when they are complete to give your family a sense of accomplishment.

Decide on an incentive

In addition to your well laid out chore chart, give your family some type of incentive for when they complete their chores. An allowance is always an idea, but that type of incentive isn’t right for all families. Offer rewards like going to the movies or gaining more household privileges. One thought is to hide the reward in an envelope around the house and turn cleaning into a treasure hunt! Make it so they’ll dust every nook and cranny until they find it.

Include the kids no matter their age

Even kids as young as 2-years-old can chip in around the house. The key is making them feel like they are contributing to the family. As children age, give them more responsibilities. Start them out with small tasks like putting away their toys or carrying dirty clothes to the laundry basket. Kids learn life skills when they contribute to chores at a young age. It also gets them into a routine of helping out around the house.

Have routines for each part of the day

Set the tone of the day with some stable routines each morning. Set a time for when everyone gets up and designate small chores to get done before it’s off to school. Additionally, have something planned for when the kids come home from school. Of course, they’ll have homework so make the afternoon task simple. Start with them putting away their lunch boxes, taking out the trash, and doing the dishes. Chores that take little to know time, but frees you up to handle more difficult tasks around the house.

Having a cleaning routine makes children feel safe and secure

Lastly, the most important reason to develop a family chore routine is that it will help to avoid children from having meltdowns. With a regular cleaning schedule, kids will know what to expect each day at certain times. When kids get into a regular cleaning routine, they’ll eventually become more cooperative and independent. With everyone helping out with chores, you’ll no longer feel so stressed about doing the work by yourself.

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About the Author: christineh