Reading, Play, and Family Work Pattern

The twins are quickly passing me by with their reading... I can't decide if I'm ecstatic with joy or envious of the time they have to relish in a good book :)  They finished the Book of Mormon, the entire set of Chronicles of Narnia (7 books in 2 weeks) and also re-read one of my family favorites, Little Britches.

No Electronics + Few Toys = Hours of Imaginative Play Outside!

My Two Little Indians:)

Family Work Pattern

Shortly after the birth of my fifth baby, (five in seven years) I was swimming in laundry and asked a dear friend and mother of seven how she managed to keep up with each of her children and her orderly home.  Her simple reply was "I train my children to contribute to Family Work while they are young."  Wow, will I be forever grateful for her words.  

My husband grew up farming alfalfa and cotton with his father.  He was taught to work hard, complete the job, and enjoy the fruits of his labors - one of the qualities I admire in him.  So, we've been blessed with four boys (and one girl :), and at this point in our lives, our farm consists of square foot garden boxes and a chicken coop!  

So, with a little help from The Parenting Breakthrough:Real-Life Plan to Teach Kids to Work, Save Money, and Be Truly Independent, we created a list of what we call Family Work.

Before we started, we had a purposeful family discussion about contributing to the family and working together, including a great discussion about the lives of Almanzo Wilder after reading the book Farmer Boy (to whom we are related through my husband's side - fun!) and Ralph Moody from Little Britches (which we read as a family).  Then, I created a list of skills that each child in our family would learn ~ depending on age and ability. 

At age seven, the twins each chose one skill at a time that they wanted to learn and master.  I worked along side them at the beginning, until they felt confident enough to do it alone (usually a week), then they continued to perfect it on their own.  As they finished each daily skill, I would praise them for their effort.  Once they were considered master of a new skill (Master Wheat Grinder, Master Sweeper, Master Toilet Scrubber, Master Weed Puller :), we recorded it and created a Family Work Card.

Now, we have three 8+ children in our family.  During Family Work Time, I choose 4 cards for each child with jobs listed to be completed.  They take ownership by choosing 3 cards they want to complete and put one back.  I complete the card they don't want.  (They beam when they have a say in Mom scrubbing toilets instead of them :)

A rule of thumb for children's ages when teaching Family Work:

Ages 4-6 work with

Ages 6-8 work near

Ages 8+ work independently and Return and Report

When my 8+ children get distracted from their work, which is not unusual for a nine year old boy with a soaring imagination, I simply tap them on the shoulder as a gentle reminder to get back to work.  For the most part, in working together, we have strengthened our relationships and established a wonderful pattern.  They know that my intent is to help them develop and succeed.  Establishing a habit of following through, as well as making a meaningful contribution to the family, has given them a little skip in their step.  Plus, our household runs smoother, our home is a more beautiful and orderly place to live, and we enjoy our Free Time knowing the work is done :-)

Basically, keep these three important things in mind when teaching Family Work and create a PATTERN that works for your individual family ;)

1.   It starts with us taking initiative and being the example

2.  The relationship is more important than the task

3.  Give them choices and ownership over the skills they choose to master