When it comes to kids and chores, you may be wondering how and when to start and what chores are appropriate for each age group. While it can feel overwhelming, we’ve got ideas and tips to help set up your family chore routine (and a free printable chore chart to help keep you on track!).
Looking for more free printables? Check out:
- Outdoor Scavenger Hunt
- Outer Space Memory Game
- Butterfly Template
- Kids Paper Daisy Crown
- Owl Template
Table of contents
- Why should I assign my kids chores?
- Should I pay my kids to do chores?
- How long should it take kids to do their chores each day?
- Why you should use a chore chart
- What chores are appropriate for each age group?
- Chores for Toddler 2-3-year-olds:
- Chores for Preschooler 4-5-year-olds:
- Chores for Elementary 6-8-year-olds:
- Chores for Older Elementary 9-11-year-olds:
- Chores for Middle School 12-14-year-olds:
- Chores for High School kids:
- Tips for getting kids to do their chores
Why should I assign my kids chores?
Assigning kid’s chores is an important way to teach teamwork, responsibility, and help them feel a part of the overall family team.
Chores help kids get a jump start on tasks that they will use as an adult (laundry, helping prepare/clean up food, yard work, etc.) so they will be more prepared to live on their own once they are out of the house.
While it can take some work to set up and get going, sharing the workload in a home can also help reduce some parent stress as there are less things on their to-do list if the kids are helping out.
Chores can also help kids feel more confident and competent as they are able to complete tasks and keep on taking on bigger projects as they get older.
Should I pay my kids to do chores?
Deciding to pay kids for chores is a personal choice and there are reasons you might choose to pay or not to pay based on your family circumstances.
The benefits of paying kids for chores are:
- Teaches them to connect working hard with earning money like they will in their adult life.
- Gives them a steady stream of income to start to manage and decide with your guidance how to spend and save.
- Some kids may be very eager to do their chores since they enjoy earning their own money, so it may not be hard to get them to complete their tasks.
The drawbacks of paying kids for chores are:
- It might not be within your family budget to pay for chores.
- Giving them an external reward (like money) may teach them to only do things when they are materially rewarded rather than just doing things because it’s the right thing to do.
- Your kid might start to expect to be rewarded for everything and demand payment every time they help or obey around the house.
- You may miss out on money management lessons if your kid refuses to do their chores (and thus doesn’t get paid so they don’t have any money to learn how to manage).
- Money isn’t a motivator for all kids, so it may not be enticing enough reason for them to complete chores.
Some families may do allowances but separate them from the requirement of chores being done, so that’s always an option too if you want them to learn money management but don’t want it tied to chore completion.
How long should it take kids to do their chores each day?
While it varies from age to age, for a rough estimate …
Kids 2-5: May spend about 10 minutes doing chores each day.
Kids 6-11: May spend about 15-20 minutes doing chores each day.
Kids 12+: May spend 30 minutes doing chores each day.
Why you should use a chore chart
Using a chore chart will help keep your chore list organized and make it easy for your kid to see what needs to be done on their daily list.
While you can print one out weekly, we suggest using a self-laminating sheet over the top so you can use dry erase markers to easily wipe off the weekly checkmarks or add/subtract chores from the list.
What chores are appropriate for each age group?
Depending on the age of your kids, there are lots of chore ideas that are appropriate for each age:
Chores for Toddler 2-3-year-olds:
- Help pick up toys and put them away
- Put dirty clothes into hamper
- Take plate to kitchen after meals and snacks
- Help put laundry in washing machine or dryer
- Take care of pets by filling food bowl
- Wipe up spills
- Use clean rags to help dust (or try making this DIY wooden cleaning set for kids!)
Chores for Preschooler 4-5-year-olds:
- All previous age group chores
- Help set the table for meals
- Help prepare some foods/snacks
- Make their bed
- Help put clean clothes away
- Water plants
- Help with grocery shopping and putting items away
- Pull weeds outside
- Use handheld vacuum to clean
- Unload utensils from dishwasher
Chores for Elementary 6-8-year-olds:
- All previous age group chores
- Wash dishes
- Empty trash around the house
- Sweep and vacuum
- Help wash car
- Keep bedroom clean
- Rake leaves
- Help pack school lunch
- Load dishwasher
- Make their own snacks
- Wipe table after meals
Chores for Older Elementary 9-11-year-olds:
- All previous age group chores
- Help clean bathroom toilets, sinks, bathtubs
- Wipe counters
- Walk dog
- Empty dishwasher
- Wash dishes by hand
- Take trash out and back from curb
- Shovel snow and help salt areas in winter
- Mow lawn
- Change bedding
- Get themselves dressed for school in morning
- Prepare meals (under supervision)
Chores for Middle School 12-14-year-olds:
- All previous age group chores
- Wash and dry clothes on their own
- More physical yard work
- Prepare easy meals on their own
- Help watch younger children supervised
- Clean mirrors
- Learn to sew simple projects or buttons
Chores for High School kids:
- All previous age group chores
- Help watch younger children unsupervised
- Make more complex meals
- Help with small shopping trips after getting driver’s license
- Iron clothing
- Help with small auto repairs
- Basically any skill you want them to have as an adult. Now is the time to teach it to them!
Tips for getting kids to do their chores
- Don’t demand perfection: These are skills that your kids are learning, so there’s going to be a learning curve as you start each new task. Especially with younger kids the job won’t always be done perfectly (or even fully), so remember to view it as a learning experience as you get started.
- Encourage and praise effort: Even before the task is complete, try and offer encouragement and praise along the way to build confidence in their budding skill set.
- Start early if possible: The earlier you can start kids doing chores the better since it will then always be a part of what’s expected in your household and a part of their daily routine. However, if your kids are older and you want to start, that’s great too! Just remember that you may encounter a little resistance at first with older kids if they aren’t used to doing chores.
