Do your kids do chores?  The boys have been doing chores or helping round the house since they could walk.  It used to be simple, they followed me round and did them, but as they have got older, it sometimes is a battle.  So what are age chores do your kids do you get them to do them?

How to encourage your kids to do chores.

Make them non-negotiable

The boys know no difference, they have to set the table, make their beds, bring their washing down etc.   It is expected that they do certain things everyday.  We don’t negotiate with these chores, they are essentially something that they need to do unless they are unwell.

Rewards and recognition. 

Some chores are expected for the good of the family and others are rewarded,  You need to find what carrot encourages your children. My boys get extra pocket money for doing certain things.  Other times if we know that they are saving for something we will give them the option of extra jobs round the house in exchange for doing them.  However, we also reward them for doing things unexpectedly with things like choosing the next movie or going to the cinema,

Make them fun

I don’t just give the boys the boring jobs, they love to use gadgets, so they use the Karcher Window Vacuum on the windows and they don’t even realise that they are doing a chore, they find it fun.  Plus the do a great job with it as it really works. I often set the timer and we will have a family tidy or use a song to see how much we can get done my the end of the song. Mini never complains about cleaning the windows when he uses our Karcher Window Vac!

Give them the right tools for the job

When they were smaller both the boys had their own cleaning kit with mini versions of my tools in.  Now they are bigger they can use adult tools, but they need to be light.  We recently were sent the Karcher  MV 2 multi-purpose vacuum cleaner and due to the fact that it is really lightweight it is perfect for the boys to use.

Don’t use chores as a punishment

Chores are not a negative thing, they are things that everyone needs to do, so that we have time together.  I do not want to make chores a negative thing or make doing more of them a consequence of bad behaviour.

Consider a chart

When my boys were younger charts really helped them.  Not just a reward chart for adding or ticking off what they have done, but also for setting clear expectations of what is expected of them.  It also saves nagging if you can just direct them to a chart.

Discuss them

Don’t be totally dictatorial when it comes to chores, there may be things that your kids really hate doing and they might want to trade them for a different chore.  Personally I hate emptying the bin, so I traded it with ironing MadDad’s shirts.  I encourage the boys to think this way to and I am as flexible as I can be.

Give them a role

As part of our Karcher Ambassador role we are reviewing their products, so I asked the boys to take responsibility for the latest two, the Window Vacuum and the Karcher  MV 2 multi-purpose vacuum cleaner.  They took their role very seriously and want to know  what they thought, then take a look at the video below.

Chores can improve behaviour 

Heavy work chores are great for helping children to destress – want to know more then take a look at Project Sensory.  I know from experience that these really help Mini and you can print off a free Heavy chore list.

How do you encourage your children to do chores?  How old are they and what are your expectations of them?

As part of our role as Karcher Ambassadors this year we have been reviewing their products.

Karcher  MV 2 multi-purpose vacuum cleaner

This is a really lightweight vacuum that is perfect for the heavier jobs round the house, including ruble and cleaning the car.  It really came in to its own when we were decorating and is easy for the kid to use due to its weight and simple instructions.  It is powerful and practical, but not really all that stylish!

It can also blow as well as suck, so is perfect for blowing leaves from guttering (yes I am short and can not reach and  it can suck up water so would have come in very handy when we have the flood in the kitchen.

Window Vacuum

One of the things that we cut back on is a window cleaner, so this is perfect for me as it means I can get streak free windows fast.  More than that the kids actually want to use it and they get great results too (no point in them doing work if I have to do it again)!

I was dubious as to whether we would use it and if it was a gimmick, but it sits in the utility room and is used on a regular basis.