by Brenda Woodds

Created on: January 10, 2009

There is nothing so effective at helping children to become responsible adults as giving them responsibility as children. When children are given chores and responsibilities, such as; washing and ironing their own clothes, it becomes the first step in their goal to become independent adults.

Children need to contribute to their home's day to day upkeep, and this includes making sure the laundry is done and put away. The self- esteem of the child is built up from being able to be successful at something important, and what better arena to begin learning to be successful than the home.

Children between the ages of 10years to 13 years old, are the perfect candidates to learn how to wash their clothes correctly, and to iron them without causing damage to their clothes or themselves. At this age, they have the manual dexterity to sort clothes into piles according to color and to differentiate between the washables and fine clothing.

At home, children have the benefit of the support of those whom they know and love, and who loves them in return. They also have the freedom to ask questions, or to even fail once or twice, without being seen as a total failure. The smart parent will use this opportunity, not only to teach their child about laundry, but about life, and how important a job well done is to your self worth and to your reputation.

Children may also learn how to complete a task, and how they may receive help for a difficult task. They will learn the satisfaction of being trusted by an adult to complete an important project. When they are taught a task correctly, with patience and positive reinforcement children learn how to teach their children correctly.

By giving children the responsibility of learning to wash and iron their own laundry, you teach them the value of taking care of what is theirs, and at the same time to value the money it took to buy those clothes. Children easily learn to appreciate things more when they become responsible for them.

Parents may also use this time to bond with their children, so let this experience make a memory for them, by keeping it fun and light hearted, letting the child understand that this task is important, but not overly important or that there is no room for error. In other words, parents, it is not worth hurting you child's feelings, or bruising their ego. You want them to know that. Try to keep in mind that they do not have the same maturity as you do or the understanding of what you understand at this age.

At each stage of the process be sure and give plenty of positive reinforcements. Set them up to be successful by anticipating what can happen and meeting that challenge head on. It will be a win win situation for everyone, as parents get assistance with the chores, and children get to become more mature, as they are able to be less dependent and more independent, which is exactly in line with their developmental stage of adolescence.

Learn more about this author, Brenda Woodds.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.