I'm always looking for little things my children can do to instill responsibility while getting a task accomplished that is needed, not to mention give them a lift in the self-esteem arena.
Today I asked my 5 year old and 3 year old to get the clothes out of the dryer and bring them upstairs. Both of them immediately said it was too hard. After hearing their complaints for a minute I said, "You're right. It's too hard. Both of you are too little and you're definitely not strong enough!"
Right away they said, "I'm not little...I'm big...I'm strong...I can do it." They ran downstairs to do the job. I could hear some grunts and the dryer door close. I could hear them struggling together to carry the hamper full of clothes up the stairs. When they got to the top, all tired out from this overwhelming task, they ran into the bedroom, shouting, "We did it, we did it."
Yes, they did it! They were responsible, they accomplished the job and they felt good about themselves. Good job! (And I didn't have to go switch the laundry :) )
More to come, but until then...Stick-to-it!
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