What household chores do your four and a half year olds do?

[GeorginaA]

Dh and I have been discussing this evening that it's probably about time that ds1 started doing some minor chores (he's 4.5). Just wondering what sort of chores other 4 year olds were doing around the nation

make s his bed

pics up his stuff helps me empty dishwasher
( when he is around)

My 6 and nearly 8 year old do ...... bugger all !

My 4 year old helps with the cooking, loads and unloads the dishwasher and cleans his own room. We have a cleaner, but the children have to clean their own room. Dusting and cleaning the floors. He also has to tidy up his own toys every night. Well, he is supposed to anyway.....

puts his toys away
sometimes gets plates out for dinner
or things out the fridge

My ds is 5.5 and he lays the table for dinner and tidies his bedroom.

Whilst we were staying at his grans he brought the wheelie bin up the drive, about 200 yds.

He is very helpful and has just started showing an interest in washing and drying the dishes. He basically does odd jobs I ask him to do.

tidying toys away, taking plate to the kitchen when finished and tbh thats about it. he will sometimes help with putting the washing in teh machine, taking it out etc. ior likes to hoover or dust but takes forever.

so when ds1 was 4 it was a case of keeping his bedroom tidy, brushing his teeth etc and the he would get his magazine on a saturday morning. (oh and if they can reach things like opening curtains in his bedroom and making his bed, which i usually had to redo later but got him thinking about cleaning up his own mess)

AGREE WITH S
DONT MAKE IT TOO REGIMENTED - HE IS ONLY 4!! oopss sorry
id make him aware of how much you two do adn he can help our when hes lurking

She has to tidy up after herself, so puts her own toys away (sometimes better than others), hang her coat up, put her shoes away. She puts her own clothes in the laundry bag and helps me to sort the washing to put in the machine. She helps me get things out of the fridge (juice for a drink, milk for cereals) and takes her plate into the kitchen when she's finished. She also helps sort out the recycling.

That's the plan Cod - we're hoping for an "ask but don't insist" policy. So regularly ask him to lay the table, for example, but if he turns round and says no cos he's engrossed in play then not to sweat it.

My DS is 4 and DD is 6. They fight over who is going to help when I ask - bless em - THAT won't last.

He gets the stuff out of the fridge when I'm making lunch, he washes up the plastic bits like boxes, he'll dust the tv and the windowledges, he'll tidy up his trainset under duress but I can't keep hoovering round it! He also likes to do the recycling - takes the stuff out and puts in the relevant boxes.

Nothing regimented but I think they need to know that mum can't do it all.

GA
great minds

Things she does alone (though always prompted): Takes cutlery to table, takes plate to sink when finished eating, "folds" (after a fashion!) and puts pajamas that can be worn another night into her drawer, puts dirty clothes in wash basket, puts her rubbish in the bin, puts shoes away in her closet, rinses out her swim costume when we've been to the pool.

Things she helps me with: sorting clothes to be washed, loading clothes into the washing machine, making her bed, making my bed, hoovering under the dining table with small hand-held "dust buster".

That's all I can think of at the moment.....

dd is only 3.5 but loves helping (it seems to run in the family - ds is already getting plates and cups out at dinner time, it's so cute)

Things she does:
Tidies toys
lays table (with ds assistance
Sorts/folds dried clothes into airing cupboard
Puts away clothes - incl matching dh's socks which she loves.
Cleans/lays fire
Picks windfall apples in garden
Opens her blind and makes bed

All but the last are done alongside an adult, and tbh, most of the time her "help"isn't not actually useful -but she has to start learning somewhere.

Ds is 4.5 and he has to tidy away all his toys in the evening. He also sets the table most days for dinner. He gets himself dressed in the morning (though I pick out his clothes) and I try to get him to remember to put his pjamas in the laundry basket. That's about it I suppose. I think next we will get him making his own bed.

Things like dusting, emptying and loading dishwasher, siding the table, putting own clothes in laundry, and getting clean ones out for next day ... Endless possibilities really!

DS2 burst into tears today when I asked him to clear the tea table: He's normally very amenable, so I was a bit surprised. He pointed out that this morning he and I blitzed the boys bedroom - moved all the furniture/hoovered/dusted, and sorted out their books. Then after church we all worked in the garden all afternoon transferring all the gear from the playhouse back into the outhouse we've just had renovated, and having a general clear out.
Poor child, he'd had hardly any 'free choice time' all day

DS helps with food preparation (adding things to things we are cooking, he separates the laundry by colours, cleans the table after he finishes, tidies up the toys, put things back to where he got them from, and helps to empty the dishwasher, in the rare ocassion he has taken his food from the fridge and set up the table with it (I was shocked at that as he was very young),etc. He's 2.9yrs old, and he seems to think that helping with house chores is just another form of playing which is great.

My ds is 4.3 and is very helpful.He has always been a tidy ,orgainised little boy.
At school they comment on how he likes to help.
He likes to hoover,dust,unload dishwasher,help with the cooking,tidy his toys,folds washing.
He just seems to enjoy helping out.
Hope it lasts as he gets older.

Ds2 (just 3) and ds1 (4.5) both put the table mats and cutlery out at tea time and put their finished plates and cutlery by the sink when they've finished.

I also try to get them to help tidying up which is a bit of a battle sometimes but ds1 is pretty good at it.

I think I'll get them to make their beds too - even if i go back and do it properly afterwards, it's the principle and they only have to put the duvet back.

Um, nothing

He likes putting his clothes in the washing basket though. Sometimes when they aren't even dirty.

I think 4 is a very helpful age actually. I find my 4 year old loves to help, while my 7 year old DD is less helpful. I think it's downhill from 4....

Ds1 is this age and makes his own bed and does various of the other things mentioned when he feels like it, the thing he loves to do (and I loathe doing myself) is putting shopping away when we've been to the supermarket.

They can sort out washing. Take clean washing out of machine and put in basket. Lay the table. Make their beds.

my ds is 5 and since he was 3 he has been helping around the house.
He likes to hoover the stairs (we have a little handheld hoover for him).
He tidies his room
Helps me to iron his clothes, i dont make him but he always wants to! (highly supervised of course)
washing up (only plastic bowls etc but he loves it)
Feeds the cat
Picks up the dog bowls after they have eaten.
mops the kitchen floor

The list goes on!!! He loves tidying up...which is the complete opposite to me