Blog: Life Management
AVOID CHORE WARS
With more and more women working outside the home, working in a home-based business, or home schooling, whatever the demands of today's society, we are finding ourselves with less time devoted to what used to be called full-time homemaking. So how do we get all those household chores done? Our spouses and children can help, but how can you solicit their help without getting into major chore wars?
A past issue of Working Mother Magazine offered some helpful tips:
When you start teaching your children how to do chores, start with short manageable tasks. For example, show them how to set the table for their own breakfast. Later assign them the task of setting the family dinner table. Make visual cues of preschooler's tasks by drawing pictures of picking up toys or cutting out magazine pictures that remind them to put their clothes away. Make two little pockets to hold the cards...one for tasks to do and a second for tasks accomplished. Put a big happy face on the second pocket. Teach your child to put the cards in the happy pocket as he finishes his tasks. Be sure to give him a big smile and hug when he completes his chores!
Before assigning household chores, find out what each family member likes to do, and what he or she dislikes. Your daughter might not mind caring for the dog if she knows she won't have to do dishes. Rotate the tasks everyone dislikes!
A messy playroom can be frustrating, but try to avoid accusations when you want a task to get done. A child will probably respond more willingly if you say, "I feel upset when the toys are scattered all around," than if you say angrily, "You never pick up after yourself."
Taking the time to find positive ways of teaching your children to help with chores will have long lasting happy results for you and your whole family!
Next week: Enlisting the aid of your spouse in household chores.
posted on: 6/8/2010 12:00:00 PM by Judy Warmington
category: The Mental Side
Life Management: < Previous Post - Next Post >
Blog Central: < Previous Post - Next Post >
Discuss This Post
There are no comments.
|
|

Life Management
by Judy Warmington
View This Blog

Subscribe To This Blog
About Judy:
Judy Warmington, Woman Time Management (owner) -- Busy wife, mother of three adult/married children, grandmother of 10 (5 boys and 5 girls!), former high school teacher (M.A. from W.M.U.), Speaker, Author, Radio Personality, and Trainer of Professional Organizers.
Judy's Website:
www.womantimemanagement.com
Judy's Products:
|