Habits: Chore Charts

I've tried many chore charts over the years... Motivated Moms... MOH... and countless others.  I've had the best success with just making my own.  I began by jotting down the things that really need to be done to make our house an enjoyable environment to live in.  Then I decided how often we need to have those things done, and who I could train to do each job.  I am shooting for the middle here - I do not need a spotless house, but I do need a clean, organized house.  I also realized I need certain things to be done before we start school for my own peace of mind (i.e. bathroom counters must be clean, there can't be dishes in the sink, trash must be taken out, etc.).

I began small.  I thoroughly trained each child to do one chore at a time.  I showed them carefully what was expected, and I had them practice the chore with me overseeing it.  I then put the chores on a chart for each of our dc.  I tried laminating the charts, but that didn't work.  They needed to check off each chore daily.  I also needed some chores to be done daily, some weekly, and some monthly.  So, I went to making 1 chore chart for each of our dc for each week of each month.  Each first week of the month, our dc do their Chore Chart 1.  Each second week of the month, our dc do their Chore Chart 2, third week... Chore Chart 3, fourth week... Chore Chart 4.  I also broke the chores up into morning, afternoon, and evening.  It takes our dc about 15-20 minutes to do their morning chores.  We turn on some happy praise music, and everyone is singing, whistling, and working.  (I have my chores I am working on then as well, but they are so varied and change so much as needs arise that a specific "chart" has not worked for me.)  For my sons, chores have been added each summer, and we have now done this long enough that my oldest ds's chores became my middle ds's chores, and even some of my middle ds's chores have become my youngest ds's chores.

Just know the chore charts I am sharing here LOOK overwhelming, but they are not.  They are the result of many years of summer training of chores.  They are also the result of some research on my part... really just trying things, jotting down what needs to be done, and seeing what worked for us.  What works for us is daily checkoffs, even if some or most of the chores are the same every day.  I cannot tell you how freeing it is not to have to TALK about what chores our dc should be doing anymore!  Because I have put real time into training our dc to do new chores each summer, they truly can do them happily and successfully.  They also keep the same chores for around 3 years, and add a few new ones each summer, until the younger brother begins to take over the older brother's chores one by one.  Training our dc in these important areas of general cleaning and upkeep of a house little by little helps them learn life skills that will be useful their entire lives.  This is a bit by bit way of me being able to do this, and it helps me out as I am a busy mom just like all of you!

One last thing, as dc get older, their chores can and probably should reflect increased responsibility.  They really like this!  Why have my oldest ds unloading the dishwasher when my middle ds can do it very well?  My oldest ds is an avid outdoorsman, like his father, and so many of his chores this year have been outdoors.  I often look out my kitchen window and see him playing with the dogs, breathing in the morning air, watching a sunrise, and just enjoying God's Creation for a moment before coming in.  The boys enjoy their chores for the most part, and they have learned to be quick with them.  Yes, there are still chores they don't love, but then that is true in all of life - excellent preparation for being a Dad someday!  

In Christ,

Julie