Age Appropriate Chores for Preschoolers
For complete printable lists of chores your preschooler can do on his own (and another list on chores he can do with help!), click on the links below!
For complete printable lists of chores your preschooler can do on his own (and another list on chores he can do with help!), click on the links below!
General Tips
1. Decisions about what to include in list
2. Decisions about what type of chart or printable
3. Explain to child that this is his daily accountability
4. Reinforce that school is his occupation
5. Daytime is for learning and working; evenings are for family and fun
6. Expectation Explanation: nothing else until list is done
7. Keep charts updated and ready
8. Enlist husband’s help
9. Be sure it really is an independent list
10. Inspect what you expect.
Donna Reish, author at Character Ink Press and Raising Kids With Character, brings you answers to your Independent Work Lists questions, or Daily Duties, as Donna likes to call them. In this episode, Donna talks in general about charts for kids’ daily independent work, including what kinds of charts, what order to put tasks, how to teach children to use them, and more. Then she delves into two age groups of chart users: elementary and junior high/high school. In those parts, Donna talks about how much help/oversight/structure a younger child might need in order to get his independent list done each day and then she branches out into helping our older kids become more independent and stronger in time management. Donna briefly introduces her ebook/download, “Daily Duties: Independent Check Sheets for Students,” which can be found at the Character Ink store.
I recently published an e-book titled Age-Appropriate Chores with printable posters for each age group (containing Chores to Do With Someone and Chores to Do By Themselves). It had a forward of several pages of chore tips. It was a freebie in January but is now available at our stores for a small price.
People have been enjoying those posters, so I decided to publish shortened versions of the posters (just the Chores to Do By Themselves) on the blog and for Pinterest. With that, I am going to run several chore tip blog posts as well. So stay tuned over the next few weeks as I write about chores and as we share these colorful memes.
In addition to talking to our babies and toddlers in the mornings, My husband also communicated with our toddlers and preschoolers at night through what we called “Malachi Time.”
“He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse.” (NIV) Malachi 4:6
Based on the verse in Malachi about “turning the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers,” Ray would tuck each child (age two or so and above) in their beds and talk to them.
Donna Reish, author of fifty language arts and writing books and the Raising Kids With Character seminar and blog, brings you this “chore” episode of Wondering Wednesday. This week Donna answers readers’ questions about age-appropriate chores. Donna introduces some keys to teaching children chores at all ages, including the importance of a set chore time, thorough training, and the difference between working with the child vs. the child working independently. Then she delves into various age groups and what are appropriate expectations for each one—with thorough, consistent training and follow up.