The Importance of Chore-Time in Your Homeschool Day (+ FREEBIES)

According to research conducted at Harvard University, children who are given chores become more independent adults. That research alone should be enough for you to understand the importance of chore time in your homeschool. I do know that assigning chores and following through with them in our home, also is a challenge. One thing is certain – incorporating chore time in your daily routine is crucial, but it is important to know why.

For some FREE resources to implement chores in your home, scroll down. 

 

I was a single mother for some time, and I just really had no choice but to teach my daughter to help me — even from a young age. I know she hated it then, bless her little heart. She had a chore to do every day except for Sundays, and I am sure she would have rather done ANYTHING else besides her duties.

Although I had no choice but to enlist her help with taking care of the home as I worked and went to school, I knew I couldn’t do it all myself. My friend, even years later, admitted to me that she felt as if I made my daughter do too much around the home.

She thought to herself that she would NEVER make her kids do so much around the home as a child (I wasn’t a slave driver, of course.) BUT, guess what? Consequently, after my friend had kids of her own, she then admitted to me she was wrong. She found herself giving her kids just as many chores if not more. She finally “got me.”

One thing I will never forget – it is the very reason I am choosing to write to you today – is that years later something happened that made me feel like less of a failure as a mom.

My now college-aged daughter called me one day. She had three roommates and at this point had been able to live on her own for some time. I heard her voice on the other line, and she said, “I just wanted to say thank you, mom.” I said, “For what, baby?”

She proceeded to tell me that she was so grateful to me for teaching her how to clean, do her own laundry, cook and be responsible. She said her roommates never cleaned, didn’t cook, and took their laundry to their parents on the weekend.

My oldest daughter whom I made do the dishes at least four days a week as a teen, was thanking me for helping her become the adult she is today!

As my heart sank to my stomach and my tears rolled down my eyes, I couldn’t help but thank her for being the best daughter I could have asked for.

See, assigning your child chores now… yes, even now as a young learner… you are preparing children for their future. Assigning your kids chores doesn’t have to be intense or even daily if you feel it is too much. Let your kids be kids and enjoy their childhood. Don’t, however, rob them of being able to leave the nest and fly when it is time. Preparing them can start small – and it can start now. 

What is the importance of chore time in your homeschool day?

Chores help teach your kids how to work together.

A family unit should come with responsibility. Having an assigned chore means the chores are not done until everyone has been accountable to complete their chore. Opportunities for kids to work together help them understand the value of working as a team and in knowing that one is dependent on the other.

Chores teach kids learn essential life skills.

A parent who does everything for their child does them a grave disservice. There will be a great frustration for them when they are trying to learn how to iron, cook, or do laundry as a full-blown ADULT. Overindulgence in adulthood is most often the result of parents doing too much for their kids. We can do better for our kids than this.

Chores are important to build your child’s self-esteem.

Praising your child for a chore well-done provides your kids with a feeling of accomplishment. Make sure your kids know when they have done a good job. Hard work pays off in this world, and it should pay off in your home as well. This is where self-motivation and initiative can start building in your child’s character.

Chores are important because they build confidence.

Having your kids take part in keeping the household together allows them to understand they have an important role in the family. Allowing them to make mistakes in doing their chores, correcting them, then giving them the chance to do it better the next time is golden. Kids learn that they can take correction AND do better. 

Chores help mommy not lose her mind. Let’s be super real here.

If you can get a nice daily routine going of chore time in your homeschool day just think that it is one less thing you need to do. As moms, we all know the importance of that one less thing we need to do. Why do we know that? Because sometimes just one more little thing can kick us into overwhelm.

Teach your children to do one thing that will help your stress level go down if it is only picking up the LEGOs off the floor, so you won’t step on them at night on the way to the kitchen for a glass of water. BOOM! This is a mom WIN. Little mom wins are sooo underrated. Don’t get me started on the days I don’t have to do dishes. That is like a Christmas present on a Tuesday.

Here are a few resources you can use to start setting up chore time in your homeschool day:

How to Set up a Chore System Like a Pro (FREE Guide)

FREE Cleaning Printables and Chore Charts for Little Ones

Fun FREE Chore Bingo Printable

7 Pages of FREE Chore Charts for Kids

FREE Printable Chore Charts to Manage Your Household

Chore Charts for Multiple Children FREE Printable Charts & Cards

Teaching Children New Chores in Only 5 Simple Steps

Teach Initiative in A Practical Way

FREE Printable Cleaning Calendar

10 Habits That Lead to a Cleaner Home

 

Melissa & Doug, Let’s Play House! Dust! Sweep! Mop! Pretend Play Set (6-piece, Kid-Sized with Housekeeping Broom, Mop, Duster and Organizing Stand for Skill- and Confidence-Building)Chore Charts for Kids Multi Use Magnetic Dry Erase Board Responsibility Behavior Chart Menu Planner to Do Calendar 12Magnetic Whiteboard Chore Chart & Reusable Dry Erase Calendar Set – for Kids, Teens, Adults – Reward Behavior Chart – Kids Responsibility Magnets & Refrigerator Reward Set – 17Cleaning House: A Mom’s Twelve-Month Experiment to Rid Her Home of Youth EntitlementSkoolzy Kids Cleaning Set of Real Working Tools (House Pretend Play Toddler Toys for 3 Year olds +), Montessori Materials for Girls, Boys – Bonus Spin Mop & Non Toxic Recipes eBookSelric Bear Image Super Chenille Microfiber Washable Mop Slippers Shoes for Women, Multi-Sizes Multi-Colors Available 9 7/9 Inches Size:5.5-8.5.

 

If you don’t assign your kids chores just yet, incorporating them into your homeschool day can be the best way to introduce them to your kids. Start light and build on them as your kids get older.

You might even get that call from them as an adult thanking you for something they resented doing as a kid. The importance of chore time in your homeschool day can have lasting impacts on your children. Training them in the way they should go includes helping them grow into responsible adults and chores are a great place to start.