Learning to do your chores – learning to be part of the family

There was an interesting article posted by the Wall Street Journal the other week. Entitled “When can my child mow the lawn?” the article talked about the role that regular chores can play in building a work ethic for children.

It was an interesting piece which, to it’s strength, offered some really practical advice about the types of chores appropriate for different aged kids. One of the really positive aspects of the article was the progressive development of chore types for kids as they got older ie 3-year olds can pick up toys and cleanup their bedrooms while 13-year olds can clean the garage and so on.

The article also discussed the role that allowances can play in helping build out this work ethic too. Now, well I understand the role that incentivization can play in motivating behavior, I differ from the author in the need to necessarily link the two aspects of work and money. While I think there is a very important element for children building a work ethic through the use of chores I’m less supportive of the desire to link this through to financial motivation.

Instead, I think the most important lesson to be drawn from allocating children chores around the house is that they learn that they have roles and responsibilities as members of the family. Helping our children learn how to be active members of our family helps them learn the skills required to help them become active members of our communities and society more broadly. This is the greatest lesson for our kids from allocating them chores around the house.

And, for those who don’t get a chance to read the article, the author thinks that kids can mow the lawn when they turn 13.

Images courtesy of: Pixabay 

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