So how do you get your kids to learn, and hopefully master, these basic home management skills without driving yourself…or them nuts?
By incorporating them into your everyday lives. Here’s how:
Cooking
You can set your kids up for a healthier future by helping them learn how to cook at home.
Home-cooked meals are also less pricey than ready-made options, which will help your young adult save money when he is on his own.
Teach your kids the basics in food preparation by having them routinely help in the kitchen. Then set them loose and ask them to prepare meals for the family.
Even kids who don’t enjoy cooking won’t have a problem making their favorite foods, so this could be one of the easiest home management skills you can teach!
Laundry
Stop and think about the last time you did laundry.
Did you have to think long and hard about what you had to do to get your clothes clean?
Of course not. It’s just second nature by now.
Do yourself a favor. Make a written list of every single thing you do; sorting whites from colors, setting delicates aside to be washed separately, etc.
How you start is up to you; you can begin by having the kids wash the family’s towels, or wash their own clothes. Either way, have them wash one or more loads of laundry with you supervising.
Then, place the list you wrote earlier in a prominent location in the laundry room and let your kids do the laundry on their own.
Organization
The truth is, this can be one of the more difficult home management skills to teach. But it doesn’t have to be.
Use tools such as bins, shelves, checklists and morning and evening routines to help. Make sure everything has a place, and use labels to help keep clutter to a minimum.
Housecleaning
Chores are one of the best ways that kids can learn how to clean and take care of a house.
And while chores can be tied to an allowance, many families choose to treat them as simply something each family member is responsible for doing.
Encouraging your kids to participate in household chores can benefit the entire family in a number of ways:
- ⬥ It teaches good habits
- ⬥ Gives everyone more time to spend together as a family
- ⬥ Teaches responsibility and accountability
- ⬥ Kids learn how to work together
Tip: When assigning a routine of chores among your kids, don’t set the goals too high. There’s a fine line between frustration and a feeling of accomplishment, so keep your expectations realistic.
Common household cleaning tasks by age:
Ages 2 – 4 years
Putting clothes in a laundry basket
Throw trash away
Match socks
Putting their clothes away
Picking up their toys
Clean up with a brush and dustpan (helps develop motor skills and coordination)
Dry mopping (again, to learn motor skills and improve coordination)
Setting the table
Putting books on the bookshelf
Washing non-breakable dishes (with adult assistance)
Ages 4 to 7 years
All the above, plus…
Fold and put away laundry (including hangers)
Fold bath and kitchen towels
Pet care (feeding and grooming with adult assistance where needed)
Raking leaves or snow shoveling (with assistance)
Washing dishes (with assistance)
Unloading silverware from the dishwasher
Picking up branches and twigs
Helping to harvest the garden
Ages 8 to 10 years
All the above, plus…
Cleaning mirrors and windows
Cleaning bathroom tub and countertop
Sweeping and vacuuming floors
Dusting
Stripping beds and remaking them
Recycling and taking out the trash
Pulling weeds
Ages 11 to 12 years
All the above, plus…
Dusting areas that are hard to reach (e.g. where a step stool is needed)
Walking pets
Mowing the lawn
Emptying and reloading the dishwasher
Helping to spread mulch, transplant and plant a garden
Teenagers 13 and up
Cleaning everything in the bathroom
Mopping floors
Washing dishes by hand and with the dishwasher without help
All chores outside (they can help the neighbors too)
