Self Help Skills & chores

Self-help skills cover everyday tasks. As children learn and master self-help skills, they become confident and able to be more independent. These skills often build upon one another and take a lot of practice and guidance. It is important to note that each child develops differently; adults should continue to give their child opportunities, tools and strategies to enable their child to become successful on their own. Scaffolding means first modeling and greatly helping a child during a task. Then, as the child is understanding the skill, the adult will pull back on their intervention in the skill little by little. Children may struggle a little, but overcoming the challenge is what helps them grow! Encourage and support all along the way!

Through chores, we can teach our kids at a young age the importance of responsibility and instill some positive work ethic. Chores can help teach many important life skills as well as aid in creating a strong sense of family and teamwork. What’s even better is that children usually love to help and want to feel important with their adults, too. Successfully teaching chores is all about modeling, setting proper expectations, giving the opportunities and the right tools (literally and figuratively). How? Make it part of your daily habits and routine. Always clean up after you are done with something, set a time of the day to complete an extra task together, clean up messes when they are made, cook together, make it fun—turn up the music! And be sure to give plenty of encouragement and praise to keep it positive and fun.