Just because your child is small in size does not mean your child can not help out with the household chores. Giving your child simple chores will help teach your child life skills and responsibility. Even the smallest task can give your child a sense of accomplishment. Although, the end result may not be perfect, it’s the process that’s important. Below are 10 easy chores for kids 10 and under.
Mail Collection
Allow your child to collect the mail each day. Designate a mail station or collection basket for the mail. If your child is older, your child can also sort the mail by household recipient or help toss junk mail in the recycle bin.
Unload the Dishwasher
Have your child unload the dishwasher. Make sure the dishes are completely dry and are not too hot. If your child is not old enough to put the dishes away, the child can sit them on the table or counter. Make sure knives and other sharp items are safely put away.
Empty the Small Trash Cans
As discussed in my free 5 Days to An Organized Life & Home email course, each room should have a small waste basket. Have your child empty the small trash cans from each room. You can reuse plastic grocery shopping bags as trash bags for each can. This will make trash collection easy.
Feed and Water the Pets
Taking care of pets is a great opportunity for our children to learn about responsibility. They will learn the importance of proving needed items to another living creature.
Sweep the Kitchen Floor
Allow your child to sweep the kitchen floor while you’re cleaning the kitchen each day. Consider their initial sweep a “pre-sweep.” More likely, you may have to resweep the floor to make sure all debris and dust has been picked up.
Collect the dirty towels
Dirty towels are just like dirty dishes… They are never completely gone. You child can toss his or her dirty towels in a designated collection basket.
Clear toys and shoes from the common areas
Having children means having children’s toys, clothes, and shoes in the common areas of your home. Designate 15 minutes a day for your children to remove their items from the common areas. This will save tons of time on the weekend. Each day, the common area will be reset back to its original organized state.
Makeup their Beds
Teaching your child to make their bed everyday is a lesson your child can use for a lifetime. The bed doesn’t have to be made perfectly. Simply pull the covers up and toss the pillows on top.
Sort their own clothes
Although your child may not be allowed to use the washer & dryer, they can still help with their laundry. Establish a day for them to sort their laundry into sections. You can also show them how to hang their clothes or put small items like socks and t-shirts in their drawers.
Maintaining a Clean Bedroom
Starting with a clean bedroom (with your help), allow a few minutes each night for the child to keep their room clean. This can include picking up toy cars, dolls, games, or the child’s dirty PJs from the corner of the room. By starting with a clean room, they will know what the room is “supposed” to look like. If a small amount of time is used each day to maintain the room, it will not get messy.
I hope you found these tips helpful. I would love to hear other ways you include your children with your household chores. If you need help getting your home and life organized, register for my free “5 Days to an Organized Home & Life” email course. You’ll receive tips and suggestions for five days and a copy of my eBook. You can register for the free course Here.
As always, thanks for stopping by. If you have any organizational or decorating questions, please do not hesitate to ask. I would love to hear from you. For information concerning our decorating services and products, please visit Divine Elements of Design.
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I find your tips for chores very useful. The most common one I always think of is feeding the pets and picking up their room. I have two daughters ages under ten and I think I will use some of these for them. I especially like the vacuuming and picking up dirty towels. Thank You!
You’re very welcome. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your own tips.
Great post! I think kids should be doing chores it teaches them responsibility from a young age!
Yes indeed. Thanks for reading!
These are great suggestions. My twins are 5 and I’m going to implement some of these.
Thanks for reading.
Such great ideas – my 4 year old daughter feeds our dog which is adorable but I think she needs to learn how to help out more. She wants to hoover along with me so she has a mini dyson but I might get her to start sweeping up too.
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Great ideas. It is so good to start them young 😉
Thanks. Have a great week.
One of the very first chores that I had as a child was folding the washcloths for my mom. It was so simple, yet I was so proud of this responsibility and accomplishment!
That’s awesome. Thanks for sharing!
Clearing the toys after playtime is such a chore for my boys. I noticed that while my 6-year-old doesn’t like clearing his toys he prefers washing the dishes. My 3-year-old however loves loves loves clearing them quick but would rather water the plants. I guess they should go where they want as long as some chores are still getting done 🙂
These are great ideas! Unloading the dishwasher was one of my earlier chores!
I do not really use the dishwasher but I do let my son wash his dishes. He has been doing on and off for about 6 months and he loves it (he is almost 4).
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This is spot on! I’m a nanny and one of the things I REFUSE to do is clean up after kids after they’ve made a mess. We always say, if you want to go play something else, you have to clean up this mess first. They also have to put their plate by the sink after they’re excused from dinner.
Brilliant ideas. At the moment I am having the most success with putting toys back in their box after my son is done playing with them. With the pet….eh…different story as all he wants to do is chase our poor cat :))
Poor cat… well putting the toys up is a big deal. You’re on the right track.
Yes, if they can learn to put their toys up, that’s half the battle.
Our kids are responsible for folding face towels and face cloths. It’s so easy to teach them how to fold in half and then fold in half again. It’s a great montessori principle we encourage at home. My 2-year-old can fold with the best of ’em!
That’s adorable. Kelsey will be 1 in a few weeks, so this time next year she’ll learn how to fold face towels. Lol
My boys are already doing some of these.They also help me fold the clothes straight from the clothesline. While folding, we have conversations to laugh about.I will try the dishwasher chore in the future when we can afford it.😊
Great point. You can use chore time to talk to them and have fun.
Just what I needed for Clark and Stone. I’ve been thinking about teaching responsibility lately.
Yes, we can’t under estimate what our littles can do. Teach them responsibility early.
I even have my 18 month old doing half of these things, lol! Thanks for these great tips.
Lol… when I wrote this post, I didn’t have my daughter yet. But she is 18 months now, and yes, I’m trying to get her involved as well… It’s a struggle because she just wants to play. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by and sharing.