Supporting children’s learning and wellbeing is a priority for the school and we are keen to help families understand that there are many simple things parents can do that will build confidence, resilience and independence in children, which in turn has a huge impact on their ability to learn at school. And now new research from La Trobe University has started to explore the positive relationship between chores and executive brain function in children.
Children Having Jobs around the House
How do we develop responsibility in kids? The answer is simple – give responsibility to them! Don’t think they can’t do it. Most kids rise to a real challenge when it’s sincerely given, and backed by realistic expectations.
It makes sense for parents to work hard to provide opportunities for kids to contribute to their family so they feel valued for what they bring to their family, rather than for what they take.
Here are five practical tips to promote a sense of responsibility in your kids:
1. Start early: Children as young as three are keen to help and take some responsibility but we often push them away and say, ‘You can help when you’re older.’ Train your kids from a young to help themselves and others.
2. Make sure the responsibility is real: Setting the table, making beds, tidying rooms are jobs that others benefit from. Jobs for the sake of jobs just don’t cut it with kids.
3. If a child forgets then no one else does the task: If a child doesn’t empty the dishwasher then it still there when they come home from school. Sounds tough but that’s how the real world operates. When you empty it, it becomes your responsibility.
4. Place help and responsibility on a roster: The use of rosters has the advantage of placing responsibility on to kids – remind them to check the roster, not to do their jobs!5. Don’t give kids jobs where you have an emotional attachment: Give them tasks that you know that you can live without if they are not done, or not done to your standard.