Involving Kids in Real Work

My kids think washing windows is fun. They also think doing the laundry, dusting, and helping cook is fun, too. They think this because they see me doing it, and little kids naturally want to do whatever it is their parents are doing.

The problem comes when adults think of ways to push kids away from helping. I get it; believe me, I do. It's not always a fun, care-free thing to have your 2 year old help mix, stir, pour, or chop while you make dinner. Sometimes half the dinner winds up on the floor, or you have to mop the floor once again. It also takes double the time to make the bed, dust, separate the laundry or mop the floor when your thee year old is by your side.

But the parents who always put their kids in front of the T.V. or try to get them involved in something else whenever they are doing chores and the kids want to help, are the the same parents who want their 12, 13 and 14 year olds to help out more around the house. Why should those kids want to now?  When they did have a deep interest, they learned they were just in the way. There have been no habits formed at a time when the kids did not see pitching in around the house as "work"; it was simply wanting to be like mommy and daddy.

My kids can crack an egg open neatly, chop vegetables, pour, mix with the mixer, separate laundry, put clothes from the washer to the dryer, dust, spray down windows, mop a floor with assistance, and help make a bed. Never have I asked either of the kids to help me do any of these things. They see me doing them, and ask to do them, too. Because she is an early reader, Alexa also reads off the grocery list to me at the store, and both kids put things from the shelves into the cart.

Are my kids special?  Well, of course, but not in the sense that other kids their age couldn't do the same things, too, if their parents would involve them in their every day work. I've read of kids who can hammer nails perfectly at age three, fry their own eggs by themselves at 7 (oh, wait, that was me!) and know how to dock a boat at age 5. It's simply because they've had hours and hours of practice at their parents' side doing these things.

If natural, life learning is to take place, kids must be involved in real, adult work from the time they are just toddlers. They need to know they are useful, and that they have an important part to play in the family. If we encourage kids in other interests, we must expand this to include practical skills, not simply ones certain people would deem "educational."