By Jenna Pauli, LCSW
Youth First
Being a parent is a delicate balance between wanting to do things for our kids and providing them with everything within our means and teaching them to be responsible, grateful humans. How can we help kids grow into responsible adults, and why is it important we start learning those life skills young?
One of the best things we can do for our kids is have them learn to help at home and do age appropriate chores starting at an early age. There is a long list of benefits to having your child do chores on a regular basis.
One of the main and most obvious reasons to assign chores to your kids is it helps them build life skills they will need as adults. Every person should know how to do regular household chores. As hard as it is to imagine it, you will not always live with them to put their laundry away and load the dishwasher for them. Before you know it, they will spread their wings, and knowing how to do basic chores will help them become acclimated to life away from home much quicker.
Another, less obvious reason for chores is to teach kids how to be a team player. Families function best when everyone is doing what they can to make things run smoothly. By learning at an early age the assistance they give at home helps everyone in the house have an easier time fosters a sense of belonging and teamwork. If there are siblings, they can work together, which will help model the idea that working as a team will help them accomplish their goals quicker than working alone.
Doing chores is also a confidence booster for kids. It gives them the opportunity to learn something new and master new skills. Kids love learning new things and feeling involved in what is happening in the home. Asking them to help with chores will also help create a tighter sense of community within your family.
Having responsibilities at home also helps kids learn time management skills. Needing to have more unfavorable tasks completed prior to moving on to more desirable tasks will allow kids to learn how to manage what is important to them and prioritize tasks so they can move on to doing the things they want to do. This is great insight into adulthood where we often times find ourselves having to complete important but not exciting tasks before we can move on to the things that bring us joy.
There are many benefits to assigning chores to your kids. It helps build self-esteem, increases confidence, helps them learn to be independent and build on life skills they will need as adults, and it helps them learn how to manage their time. I know it seems like we blink and they are older, and sometimes doing tasks for them feels like we get to keep them little for just a minute longer, but in reality we are stunting their ability to thrive. Help your kids reach their fullest potential by allowing them to see you believe they can accomplish anything.
Jenna Pauli is the Youth First Social Worker at Holy Redeemer and Good Shepherd schools in Evansville.