A Quick Report on the Chores Chart

I let you all know last week that I’d switched up how we’re running chores in my household. It was a drawn out process, filled with family debate and short tempers at time, but in the end, the whole family went along with it. I wasn’t sure how it would go, but it was worth a shot.

Nearing the end of the second week of the new system, I decided to do a walk through of the house to assess how it was going. And lo and behold, each and every room looked good. Not spotless, and not perfectly tidy, but tons (tons!) better than any random spot check weeks ago would have turned up.

Better yet, there has been much less complaining about the chores around the house. Denisa is getting the help she needs, the kids are doing what they’ve been asked to do, and it’s all been going great so far.

Of course, I realize we’re still in the honeymoon phase of the relationship. Things feel different, and so the kids don’t mind doing things as much. But I have good reason to think this has the potential to stick. For one thing, the kids themselves have been talking about how much they like the new approach. They know exactly what’s expected of them each day, and they know it’s up to them to get it all done. They also know they only need to do their least favorite chores for one week of the month. They’re a fan of that.

Denisa and I have been easing them into it, as well. “Clean room” is one of the daily chores they each have, but we haven’t dictated that they need to have a spotless room right off the bat. Instead, they’ve been allowed to work for 10 minutes each day on cleaning their room, but they have to do it consistently. Go figure. It works.

It’s also really helped that they see me actively doing my chores before I do fun things each day. They see me come home from work and get right to work on my chores, sweeping or cleaning a room. And so they feel like they’re part of a team, and not just on their own. (Though I’ll add that it’s added stress to my life in that respect, as it means there’s more things I need to stay on top of.) Yesterday I even saw one child get up from the table, rinse their dish and put it in the dishwasher, even though they weren’t on table clean up. They just knew it would be their turn to do table clean up eventually, and so they could see the advantage of everyone chipping in some.

I don’t mean to say that having a single dish be cleared up should be cause for mass celebrations in the street. But when you consider what that dish stands for, maybe it makes more sense.

So far, so good. Can definitely recommend.

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