The Art Of Making Kids Help In The House

“P it’s time to clean up!” Comes a calm low-key request.

“Sure, Mom I will clean in five minutes.” Was a quick response.

Unfortunately, those five minutes did not elapse, and eventually we all called it a night with me finishing off the cleaning just to avoid any drama in the house.

The above scenario was a repetition of every day. Until finally one fine day, I had it!

Summoned my 10-year-old and made some rules and outlined some chores age appropriate for him.

While I was charting them out, he mumbled while rolling his eyes, “God! It seems mom got up from the wrong side of the bed.”

I heard it but ignored!

Finally, after an hour of fuss and groans, we came to a conclusion.

Chores, Duties, Tasks were assigned on a daily basis. Although, he kept whining that he is too young to work around, and then tried to blackmail me emotionally by showing his sweet little palms.

But, then I wondered how would he get responsible?

Experts also recommend them since they avoid a child to become lazy and irresponsible while allowing them to play a vital role in the family and household by helping them grow into a responsible caring adult.

I took a big gulp, and kept a stern face that he ought to do chores everyday because he is a part of the family. And since each family member contributes towards the household, he also ought to do that!

Seeing that sob, I put in some compensation with the hope that it will help him drive towards his goal each day without my constant reminders (which after some time, drives me nuts!)

He jumped with joy with the longing of earning some compensation for electronics time and coins as pocket money and after negotiating the amount/time for each day (Phew!) and the reminder that no work no money thing. We shook hands and parted our ways.

The printout was proudly hung on the refrigerator, and I continued with my chores while he promised to start his the next day since it had been quite an overwhelming day for him (yeah! Right)

The next day when the sun rose at its usual time, we all got back to our routines. However, my kid was lamenting that the sun was out too quick, and continued to wander aimless in different rooms. I controlled my rage, and kept eyeing him now and then with the hope that he comes to senses.

Three days went by, and he was getting bored. Darn bored, in his words!

I very patiently suggested that he start acting in order to enjoy the bounties of hard work.

A Bounty tends to attract anyone starting from age 1 to 100. This pre-teen gathered some acceleration and since then he has not applied brakes to this momentum.

Result

He enjoys time with electronics or TV during weekends for selective time. His piggy bank is gradually piling up to the top, and rattles fiercely when shook. The concept of spending wisely has erupted naturally since; it is his hard earned money. This has been followed by the idea of saving and retaining, which has given him enough confidence.

My two cents

Nothing comes for free in this universe. Then why not introduce the path of discipline, responsibility, and consequences upon decisions to them in a gentle, amiable way in the comfort of our four walls!

Ruchira Khanna is the author of Choices published on Amazon. She blogs at http://abracabadra.blogspot.com/