Getting started with encouraging independence

[crazychemist]

For those of you with children that do things for themselves..... how did/do you encourage it?

My eldest is 4, so a good age for taking a bit of personal responsibility I think. So far she mostly does as she’s told, but I haven’t given her much responsibility for looking after herself/her own things and I’d like to start getting her into some good habits now she’s definitely old enough.

What did you start with? I don’t want it to be a huge change (there are enough changes in her life with Covid and new siblings!) but would like to get the ball rolling a bit.

I was thinking I’d get her a laundry basket to put her dirty stuff in, and she’s drawn some pictures to go on her drawers so she knows where stuff goes so she can put it away after I’ve washed and sorted it. What other little chores are good to start with? I’d rather avoid kitchen-related stuff for the time being.

3y6mo sets the table for dinner, will put his pants and socks away. Can load the washer for me. Must do some tidying up each day. He sometimes decides to feed the dogs himself.

We make matching socks into a bit of a game.

He helps to put the food shop away and I do have him in the kitchen helping, e.g. scraping the seeds out of a pepper for me.

We encourage putting his things in the laundry baskets at bath time etc and putting shoes away when he gets in (unlike me)

@Harrysmummy246 that’s helpful, thank you. Laying table sounds like a good idea, I remember doing that as a small child.

Terrible of me, but making dinner at the moment is a little break for me away from everyone else while someone else watches the kids! Definitely in the long term I’d love to get DD involved, and I used to live helping my dad, but it’s literally my only alone time right now and I don’t want to share it.

Agree. Only very occasionally does he join in, mostly after he sets the table, that's his TV time. He actually got quite involved in tidying his bookshelf this week and has been keen to put books back

He also quite likes dusting/polishing

When mine were that age they put away their clothes (untidily), made their beds (fluffed up the pillows and pulled up the duvet), helped set the table, put away shopping, watered house plants.

@nimbuscloud ah yes, bed making and plant watering! Hadn’t thought of those.

Great ideas people!

Mine put dirty laundry in (her own) wash basket, brought it down on wash day, took clean clothes back upstairs and put them away again.
Set the table. Put dirty cutlery, crockery etc on top of the dishwasher (now, at 6, stacks it for herself and younger siblings). Put her (plastic) crockery away when clean.
Tidied the living room every night ready for the morning, with help from me - so all books and toys away.
Put out fresh toilet rolls when finished.
At 6, she’s now very neat and tidy and has also taught younger siblings likewise - eg I very rarely have to tidy her room, so I recommend starting the routines early!!

My DD is 4 and she loves to help!
Her bed is too high to make, but she loves having her own basket for her dirty clothes.
Putting her clothes away might be the next move for her.

Helps to tidy and runs around clearing the floor of toys if I'm hoovering.