Do your kids have household chores each week? Nothing ever goes exactly as planned at my house and unfortunately some chores get lost in our hectic schedule. Not the best idea. According to Fiona Purdon "Experts say household chores could dictate a child's success in later life."
At my house I've found the best way to make sure the chores get done is to stick to a routine. I even put the chores on a chart for the kids to read (or add photos for younger kids). If you have a regular schedule with a set chore routine it is also easier to check to see if the kitchen floor got vacuumed or the dog was fed dinner.
My kids love to procrastinate and this can make their To Do list of chores linger for hours...even days. I hate this. Now I set a specific time as a deadline and once the chores are done, then the kids get to go and play, watch, TV or whatever.
"There's a lot of good things about household chores because they teach kids social and organisational skills, to be an active member of a group and make a contribution and take on responsibility which is something that is good to learn early and to carry on later in life. Kids have to learn life is not all about having fun and play," says Curtin University psychologis Melissa Davis in the Essential Baby article Recipe for domestic harmony.
My kids like to compare what they are expected to do with what their friends have to do for chores. And they want to know if a friend gets a bigger allowance for doing daily/weekly chores. I don't have a great answer for this discrepancy. Every family has different standards and different expectations. This explanation never seems to satisfy my kids when they have friends with no chores. All I can do then is tell my kids that in our house we have our own rules for chores, we don't follow a community guideline for chores.