Farm children usually have a reputation for being excellent academic students because they were taught how to work. Many of these chores had to be done often without specific instructions. Of course, the farm children had to improvise to get the chores done correctly and in a timely manner. These varied experiences give these youngsters the opportunity to become competent individuals in many areas. They can quickly and confidently repair or replace many items in various situations.
What children living on a farm experience to make them competent is not what children of today experience. Many children do almost nothing around the house to help out the family. The normal chores expected of children in the past are done by others, such as landscapers, home cleaners, painters and others, robbing the children of common knowledge they could use for their future.
Today, many parents are busy doing a million things inside and outside of the home. As the children grow older, it should become possible for them to take over some tasks. “Clean up your room.” Usually, the mother informs the child where they can put their clothes, toys, electronic gadgets and other objects. It might take many reminders and explicit instructions where everything belongs. Eventually, a misplaced object becomes an exception to the rule.
As the youngster attempts different types of chores, he develops new skills. They try new methods of attacking different problems and thinking through a series of solutions. This process of rationally attacking a difficult situation is an indication the child is developing the skills necessary to become a fully functioning adult.
Helping set the table, putting the silverware in the proper place and emptying the dishwasher are a few of the many chores that even young children can do to help the family. As a child develops into a teenager, the number of ways they should help out with activities for the family increases in number and intensity. The adolescent is expected to figure out the best way to complete the chores they need to do and complete them in an efficient way to be helpful.
It is incumbent upon the parents to make sure the growing child has age-appropriate things they can do to help out with family chores. Unfortunate children are those whose parents do everything for them, never giving them a chance to learn simple tasks that are necessary to maintain a home or even prepare a meal.
As youngsters grow into adults, they normally will want to demonstrate their abilities to plan and complete more sophisticated projects to show their competence. The child may not realize the reward for doing the chores correctly is to develop competence in doing many different things that will benefit him all his life.
Knowledge of various methods of efficiently completing chores and experimenting with different methods to determine which is best to complete a task is a terrific method of self-learning.
Learning to do many different chores around the house is a definitive way to help a child learn diligence, time management, and the perseverance needed to be an academic achiever.
Domenick Maglio, PhD. is a columnist carried by various newspapers and blogs, an author of several books and owner/director of Wider Horizons School, a college prep program. Dr. Maglio is an author of weekly newspaper articles, INVASION WITHIN and the latest book entitled, IN CHARGE PARENTING In a PC World. You can see many of Dr. Maglio’s articles at www.drmaglioblogspot.com.
