omishev Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 One thing that appeals to me about homeschooling is having more time for chores and teaching the kids to cook and clean, things I didn't learn until I got married! On average, how long do your kids spend doing chores etc (what are their ages)? I know this can vary a lot based on their motivation at the moment.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 Well, I can't say my kids spend a long time on chores. Everyone in the house makes their bed, tidies their room, gets dressed, and tidies their bathroom (or half of the bathroom) first thing in the morning. The kids pitch in at meal times to their ability: oldest sometimes cooks, 8yo sets the table and fills drinking glasses, we all clean up after the meal. After dinner we do a general house tidy, and then there's getting ready for bed (wipe out sinks, set up for next day's activities, etc). As they get older, they get more chores. 8yo does his own laundry often now, the teen mows the lawn, they both share taking care of their shower and sweeping their rooms/dusting parts of the house. But I can't say they spend a long time on things because it's just part of our daily life. You take care of messes. You maintain standards. You value your belongings. You help your immediate community. It's just what we do. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omishev Posted August 30, 2018 Author Share Posted August 30, 2018 1 minute ago, HomeAgain said: Well, I can't say my kids spend a long time on chores. Everyone in the house makes their bed, tidies their room, gets dressed, and tidies their bathroom (or half of the bathroom) first thing in the morning. The kids pitch in at meal times to their ability: oldest sometimes cooks, 8yo sets the table and fills drinking glasses, we all clean up after the meal. After dinner we do a general house tidy, and then there's getting ready for bed (wipe out sinks, set up for next day's activities, etc). As they get older, they get more chores. 8yo does his own laundry often now, the teen mows the lawn, they both share taking care of their shower and sweeping their rooms/dusting parts of the house. But I can't say they spend a long time on things because it's just part of our daily life. You take care of messes. You maintain standards. You value your belongings. You help your immediate community. It's just what we do. Right now (going to school) I feel like we are always in rush mode. Forget the mess, just get in the car! Forget the mess, just get in bed! ? Not cool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 2 minutes ago, omishev said: Right now (going to school) I feel like we are always in rush mode. Forget the mess, just get in the car! Forget the mess, just get in bed! ? Not cool I think the key is just getting into the routine. Start small - wake them up, give them a kiss, and tell them to make their beds before they get dressed. Ignore the rest. On the weekend, work on getting bedrooms in order so each night you can tackle the toy mess together without much fuss. Take a few minutes in the morning if need be and have them put away a set amount or clear a specific area of their room. My 8yo doesn't play in his room often so his chart has him tidy in the morning because he likes to read at night, or write stories, or look at his star cards..things he does after bedtime. But we try to stress that everyone in the family has jobs and we're often working at the same time, side by side. So mealtimes are about working together, common rooms everyone gets a job, and then we all relax together. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 Was this different for you during summer vacation from school? Did you have plenty of time to work on chores and cleaning? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 22 minutes ago, omishev said: One thing that appeals to me about homeschooling is having more time for chores and teaching the kids to cook and clean, things I didn't learn until I got married! On average, how long do your kids spend doing chores etc (what are their ages)? I know this can vary a lot based on their motivation at the moment.... Not enough;) 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 10 minutes ago, omishev said: Right now (going to school) I feel like we are always in rush mode. Forget the mess, just get in the car! Forget the mess, just get in bed! ? Not cool This can potentially be just as bad with homeschooling! You could start with a timer and have everyone do 5 minutes as soon as you get home, 5 minutes after dinner, 5 minutes before bed. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loowit Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 When my kids were little housework/chores suffered a lot. I spent a lot of time trying to do school with my older two and keep the younger one out of trouble. My youngest was very clingy as a baby and toddler. We did do cooking together though and that was a lot of fun. The best is taking a week off near Christmas to do cookie baking and candy making. We started this when my oldest was starting Kindergarten and still do it every year. As my kids have gotten older they are expected to do more chores and those take up some time, but I wouldn't say it was a ton. Throw in a load of laundry here, load a dishwasher there between lessons. But most of our day is spent doing school, chores and school work are secondary. However, there are certain chores that I expect to be done before school starts for the day. My kids know a lot more about cooking and cleaning than I did at their ages. They are 17, 15, and almost 13. My mom was a stay at home mom that was very tidy and didn't have a lot of patience for teaching me skills at home. DH taught me how to do laundry when we were in college. I learned most of my cooking from listening to my mom as she cooked and watching a lot of cooking shows on PBS and Food network. So I think the combo of having my kids at home all day to learn these skills and forcing myself to be patient enough to learn to do them themselves has been a positive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 When I use the checklists from Motivated Moms it goes better here. It lists chores kids need to know how to do but aren't all daily or even weekly things. Right now it is $9 for a year's worth of printable lists so not bad at all. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 I had an only. I was very organized and we kept a really neat and clean home when he was little. Since I had an only my opinion might not be relevant. My observation though is that homeschooling does give you more time to have them help with chores, but absent a good schedule and organization it could be as bad if not worse to have them home all the time vs being gone to school. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hippiemamato3 Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 Very little time spent on chores here. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 15 hours ago, Ottakee said: When I use the checklists from Motivated Moms it goes better here. It lists chores kids need to know how to do but aren't all daily or even weekly things. Right now it is $9 for a year's worth of printable lists so not bad at all. Does it have all the likely things a typical household needs so that going through it for a year everything gets done? And could you give examples of the chores for kids since that’s not online samples? Does the timing work? I’d be concerned that it says to do things on a particular date, but that local circumstances don’t allow that to happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 (edited) 55 minutes ago, hippiemamato3 said: Very little time spent on chores here. Same here. And that includes myself. It somehow all gets done, when it needs to. Kids helped when asked to. Both are now perfectly capable of running their own household. I would rather make it a goal to spend minimal time on housework because there are so many things in life that are more important and more fun. Edited August 30, 2018 by regentrude 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hippiemamato3 Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 1 minute ago, regentrude said: Same here. And that includes myself. It somehow all gets done, when it needs to. Kids helped when asked to. Both are now perfectly capable of running their own household. I would rather make it a goal to spend minimal time on chores because there are so many things in life that are more important and more fun. (And no, that does not mean we are slobs; my house has always been drop in company ready at all time) Yep, that's my philosophy too. I didn't homeschool DD so she could learn to cook and clean! Those things happen as a matter of course, but are not at all part of our school day. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monica_in_Switzerland Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 2 minutes ago, regentrude said: Same here. And that includes myself. It somehow all gets done, when it needs to. Kids helped when asked to. Both are now perfectly capable of running their own household. I would rather make it a goal to spend minimal time on chores because there are so many things in life that are more important and more fun. (And no, that does not mean we are slobs; my house has always been drop in company ready at all time) I tend to agree with this, but I live in a small apartment that can be "put to rights" from total chaos in a half day, and kept up with 30ish minutes a day plus kitchen duties. I think learning to cook as an independent young adult is actually part of the fun of being a young, independent adult. I lived in an apartment in college, and I have so many fond memories of friends coming over and us trying out this-or-that recipe, making mistakes, fun times. But in order to do that, I did know (and I do teach my kids) basics- how to choose good produce, how to brown ground meat, how to bake a cake, etc. I will be happy if each of my kids cooks one meal a week as a teen, in addition to making their own breakfast and lunch. Washing dishes is not rocket science, my kids don't need a lot of "practice". Some days, I clear the table, some days it's DH, some days, it's the kids, just whoever makes most sense for the activities of any given evening. If we head more of a homestead, I'm sure it would be very different. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 3 minutes ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said: I tend to agree with this, but I live in a small apartment that can be "put to rights" from total chaos in a half day, and kept up with 30ish minutes a day plus kitchen duties. I think learning to cook as an independent young adult is actually part of the fun of being a young, independent adult. We only have a house, not a farm/homestead, so it doesn't take me long either. Key is no clutter, and not too much stuff. So I've never found housework to be this big deal. Maybe I'm doing it all wrong. ("Teaching" somebody to do laundry? What's there to teach? ) My DD learned to cook when she was a preteen/teen; she loves cooking and baking and can teach me. My DS had no interest; he learned a few basics, but I know he wouldn't find it worth bothering with cooking for himself. Like my DH ; he does not find the effort worth the outcome and, when he lived alone, just ate bread, cheese and raw vegetables/fruit. Shrug. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monica_in_Switzerland Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 I don't have any issues with kids doing heavy chore loads for the good of the family because the family has a farm, home business, whatever. But I won't *invent* chores for my kids to do just so they can do more chores. I think, OP (assuming there is no farm here), if you are feeling like there is not enough time to get the chores done, then you are probably suffering from a combination of being overbooked and under organized. I don't mean that in a judgey way either, it just is what it is. If you are constantly needing to say, "Leave it, we're in a rush!" than you just have too many things going on. Drop activities and commitments until you have adequate time for life's necessities, without rushing. Or it may be that your OP is a very roundabout way of saying, "My kids are overbooked and I want to know if homeschooling will give them more free time." And if that's your real question, the answer will depend on how you run your homeschool... but it could very well be a yes. One of the reasons I love homeschooling is because we very rarely feel rushed. There is time for everything, including lots of free time. I just never would have framed it in terms of time for chores. 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 4 hours ago, Pen said: Does it have all the likely things a typical household needs so that going through it for a year everything gets done? And could you give examples of the chores for kids since that’s not online samples? Does the timing work? I’d be concerned that it says to do things on a particular date, but that local circumstances don’t allow that to happen. It has all the typical things for a house hold.includong things you forget like duat ceiling fans, clean dryer vent that goes outside, etc. I print out the daily lists where they show them all on one sheet for the whole week. We can then treated like a weekly list and do a few bigger things on Wednt of we know Thursday and Friday are busy, etc. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMS83 Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 22 hours ago, omishev said: One thing that appeals to me about homeschooling is having more time for chores and teaching the kids to cook and clean, things I didn't learn until I got married! On average, how long do your kids spend doing chores etc (what are their ages)? I know this can vary a lot based on their motivation at the moment.... Mine are 8, almost 11, and 12 1/2. Chores take us about an hour on average. That includes a room of the day (each of us has a task), starting laundry, dishes, vacuuming, and (hopefully) wiping down counters, sinks, and mirrors. Beds are made and rooms tidied as part of dressing/getting ready, and not factored into that hour. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wendyroo Posted August 31, 2018 Share Posted August 31, 2018 Most of our chores are just a part of daily life. My kids' routines include things like setting and clearing the table, tidying their rooms, picking up their toys, etc. They also each have a few weekly chores that benefit the family: emptying the garbage in the van, taking out the recycling, changing the hand towel in the bathroom, etc. 8 hours ago, regentrude said: We only have a house, not a farm/homestead, so it doesn't take me long either. Key is no clutter, and not too much stuff. So I've never found housework to be this big deal. Maybe I'm doing it all wrong. ("Teaching" somebody to do laundry? What's there to teach? ) My DD learned to cook when she was a preteen/teen; she loves cooking and baking and can teach me. My DS had no interest; he learned a few basics, but I know he wouldn't find it worth bothering with cooking for himself. Like my DH ; he does not find the effort worth the outcome and, when he lived alone, just ate bread, cheese and raw vegetables/fruit. Shrug. I think for some kids/people chores are easy to pick up and therefore do not need to be taught. For others, though, especially those who struggle with executive function, even simple chores are overwhelming until they have been repeatedly taught and practiced. You would think - "Teaching" somebody to do laundry? What's there to teach? - but actually it is composed of A LOT of steps. Gathering dirty laundry (which if you struggle with executive function is probably not neatly corralled in a hamper - in fact we routinely have to gather laundry from the backyard, from the van, from under beds, from the basement, etc), identifying/remembering if there is anything that needs to be treated specially, sorting or at least dividing into loads, deciding washer settings (decisions can paralyze my crew even if they have been told they are largely inconsequential decisions), remembering to move the load from the washer to the dryer, and then remembering to take the clothes out of the dryer and in some fashion put them away. And that doesn't even take into account the biggest step - initiating the task. My 9 year old hasn't had any screen time in well over 6 months because he can't force himself to initiate his chores. Intellectually he knows: 1) He wants screen time, 2) He cannot have screen time until he does his chore, 3) His chore will only take about 3 minutes (we have actually timed this!!), 4) He should just quickly do his chore so he has time to play on screens. He knows all that, and yet in 6+ months he has never earned screen time because he cannot get over the hurdle that he doesn't want to do his chore. He longs for screen time, but he cannot force himself to do a 3 minute chore in order to earn it. When dealing with kids like that (I have at least 3 of them), I cannot be laissez-faire about teaching/apprenticing/scaffolding chores. That certainly doesn't mean that approach won't work for some people, but it should be acknowledged that for some children it may be wholly insufficient and leave them decidedly unprepared to tackle adulthood. Wendy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof1 Posted August 31, 2018 Share Posted August 31, 2018 My 5 yr old helps put away the silverware minus sharps knifes. She also helps DH take out the trash and put new trashliner in. She also suppose to clean up her room and any room where she played and left her toys and things. Only her stuff. She's at the age were she wants to help me clean house. I let her when circumstances dictate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted August 31, 2018 Share Posted August 31, 2018 Okay, I timed it today with DS8: 6:00-6:05 - he made his bed, tidies his room, got dressed and tidied up his bathroom, kicking his laundry basket out to the hallway because it was full. 7:00-7:10 - he emptied the dishwasher while talking to dh, who was making breakfasts. 7:30 - he started his laundry. So the total time he has spent on chores this morning so far was a little over 15 minutes, most of that because he was talking while he was working. Tomorrow he'll spend slightly less time because it's Saturday, so instead of making his bed he'll strip it and thrown the sheets in front of the washer and I'll do those, then put them back on so he starts each week with a well made bed. Today he will also still do: -dust the coffee table or vacuum the rug (an adult will do the other) -give his toilet a quick scrub after it gets cleaner put in -tidy up his play areas this evening. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bolt. Posted August 31, 2018 Share Posted August 31, 2018 5 to 15 minutes, twice a day. (Half of it on minding their own spaces and belongings, and half of it on something that benefits everyone.) Ages 10 And 13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alice Posted September 1, 2018 Share Posted September 1, 2018 On 8/30/2018 at 1:41 PM, regentrude said: Same here. And that includes myself. It somehow all gets done, when it needs to. Kids helped when asked to. Both are now perfectly capable of running their own household. I would rather make it a goal to spend minimal time on housework because there are so many things in life that are more important and more fun. This is us also. My goal for my kids was that they would know how to cook and clean and that they would see the household as one where everyone chips in when needed. Some days, they have more school work and I do all the cooking. Sometimes I’m in a hurry to get to work or need to go somewhere and they make lunch. Or dinner. We all work together. I’d guess they spend about an hour a day on average, including things like cleaning up after themselves after breakfast or feeding the dog. But it’s all spread out and just part of life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeachyDoodle Posted September 1, 2018 Share Posted September 1, 2018 I love this about homeschooling too. It's so much easier to be intentional about teaching life skills when we spend our days together. My dc each have a chore per weekday, more or less, built into their schedule. It takes less than 30 minutes most days. DS7 gathers and sorts laundry (twice per week), dusts, empties trash, strips his bed and gathers up the bath towels on linens day. DD13 cleans the glass and windows (not all, just the ones in the doors), vacuums, cleans bathrooms, and strips and remakes her bed and starts her own and ds' sheets in the washer. Both dc are responsible for keeping their rooms and bathroom neat, generally cleaning up after themselves, making their beds, etc. They make/clean up their own breakfast and lunch most of the time. And occasionally I'll ask for additional things on an as-needed basis -- e.g., unloading the dishwasher. I know lots of people who have their tweens/teens wash their own laundry, but that seems like a waste to me. I can keep the family in clean clothes with a couple loads two days per week, and I don't really mind it since it's easy to work around school and other responsibilities. DD can and does do laundry when needed but having her do her own wash separately doesn't make sense to me. YMMV, of course! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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