Do your kids refuse to pick up their rooms as quickly as you would like them to? I am sometimes overwhelmed by picking up after my children so I KNOW they are! I make sure I break the chore into bite sized pieces first. For example, they must pick up their books first. When this is done, they are instructed to move onto the next thing such as dirty clothes, clean clothes, toys, video games, etc. They are very eager to come and tell me when each step has been accomplished. I save a fun and special activity for these times as a reward. This has made my life SO much easier!
When I do this with my 6 year old who is not reading yet, I make her a list with a picture of what she is supposed to pick up and put away or do. A picture of a book means put the books back on the shelf. A picture of a shirt or shorts means put the clothes in the laundry. A picture of dolls or trucks would mean put the toys away. This way she does not need to keep coming back to me with "what do I do next". You can draw pictures or cut out pictures from magazines. The same list can be used over and over again.
Jacqui - What a GRAND idea. And I think this would work for us adults too! LOL You are right, it feels good to get even a little step accomplished. Thanks for the tip. --Jayne
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