What do you consider 'household chores' and what is 'personal responsibility'?

[LittleOwl153]

I've seen a few threads recently about what sahp 'should' do with their time, whether this is a mother on maternity leave or a long term decision. Or even how housework should be split by those who work out of the house.

So I wonder what you put on each list? And does the list depend on the age of the kids involved?

For me - with 2 primary aged kids

Personal jobs
Putting washing in (sorted) wash basket
putting away clothes once iron
Clearing own dishes to dishwasher after a meal
Cleaning wash basin of toothpaste etc after use, cleaning residue from toilet after use
Wiping shower after use

Household chore
Load washer, dryer, ironing
Preping, cooking and serving up a meal, clearing away cooking pots etc to dishwasher
Emptying dishwasher and putting pots away
Full clean of bathroom

So my initial thoughts... what would you add?

Household

• anything that would still have to be done for everyone else if you weren't there

Personal

• any job that would disappear if you went away for a month

I think some people spend more time thinking about chores than doing them!

We don’t really split things along those lines. We bumble along and it all gets done.

Primary is a wide age range.

By the top end of primary I expected my children to take a turn at doing dishes (no dishwasher here), put their own (unironed, we only iron for funerals and job interviews) clothes away and put dirty ones in the basket. Cleaning toilets not so much.

Hoovering, putting a load of washing on, bathroom cleaning have always been a bit ad hoc between the adults of the house. We don't really have a fixed division other than I do the cooking in the main because I enjoy cooking so I rarely do dishes.

I have never thought about this. My ds is 11. He has no set chores but he does like to help me with things.

When I grew up:

• at 9 - had to do dishes every night, clean room including dusting
• by 12 - (admittedly my dad was in hospital for a year here) - mow the large yards, clean and maintain the pool ( basic above ground, maintenance in realm of testing add whatever was needed), vacuum, clean house, cook one meal a week
• by 15 - mum went to full time work - do mid week laundry for whole family, iron what needed ironing, prepare meals for evening meal for family of 4, vacuum, dust whole house, clean bathroom

I can’t imagine being so petty as to not put away a partners clothes or loading their plates into the dishwasher etc.

I think moaning about having to do housework whilst another person financially provides for your every need shows a huge double standard. Happy to outsource working but not happy to do the house share in return.

I am the same as you OP regarding personal jobs. My children (from young primary to secondary school) all do their chores regardless of age. A 5 year old for example can take their plate into the kitchen and even scrape leftovers into a bin. They can also put clothes into their drawers (folded by their older sibling or parent though)
I expect everyone to pitch in with cleaning days too. One kid will take a cloth to the skirting boards, hubby will be sweeping and mopping, older child will have the polish and dusters out, eldest tackles the bathroom while I clean the windows for example (all jobs vary). We work together as a family. Even when taking the bins out, one child will notice and run ahead and hold the bin lid open to make it easier for me to put the bag in. We all live here and while I am happy to pick up bits, cook dinners, do laundry and wipe down units I don't think it should all be the job of one person. We all live here and we all contribute to the mess. DH who works knows how the washing machine works as well as I do.

By comparison my friend has a list of chores and their pocket money worth for her DC (8yo). Things like sweep the kitchen, tidy room, tidy play room etc So child can pick what chores they do. I've also seen this model linked to screen time. As in stack dishwasher for the week gets you 30mins a day screen time.

@k1233 It's a good way for lots of homes. I don't use that personally as I believe you shouldn't be paid for doing something you really should be doing for your family and home anyway but I have no issue with others doing it that way.
I do give my eldest pocket money for doing extra jobs that's aren't necessarily personal responsibility like watching her siblings for me. If she doesn't want to I don't make her. They're my responsibility. That said, she'd do it for free because she adores her siblings