Each January I evaluate the chore schedule for the kiddos. My goal is to make sure that before they leave home, they are each proficient at doing all the necessary tasks to keep a home clean and tidy. They are learning, contrary to some posts you may have seen :)
So, this year, I have decided I want to take a bit of a different approach. Typically, I make a chart for each child, listing what they need to do each day of the week. A good system, but I found it hard to check up on the work that was being done, because it was being done in 3 or 4 different rooms each day. I also feel like they are getting old enough to keep their rooms tidier than I had expected them to last year. But I knew they were going to need some guidance in this area. So, after doing some research I have decided to adapt the FlyLady approach. Here is what I came up with:
We have a list of Household Zones and then customized zones for the kiddos bedrooms.
The house was easily broken into 5 zones, which works nicely into a 5 day work week, don’tcha think?
These are basically all the things that would have normally been broken down and done throughout the week. This year, however, we are going to work together on each zone until it is done. This will enable me to give more guidance as their chores are being done, because we will all be in the same room. I am hoping it will also be an encouragement to the kiddos to be all together, working on one thing, and then to be done. After all, “Many hands make light work”.
The kids also have what they call their “list” that they do each morning before breakfast. They each: dress, make beds, tidy rooms, brush teeth (although sometime we do that after breakfast), have quiet time, the older 2 also tidy the bathroom and feed animals.
Then I made these zone lists for their bedrooms, focusing on the trouble spots…
Hmm, 5 zones too, interesting……
I am hoping this new system will help reduce my stress level over their messes in their rooms. I am also hoping that it will give the kiddos a clearer picture of what we are expecting from them.