When kids start doing their own laundry?

Mine is 3 years now. She is no where closer to sorting out the laundry but when I do it, she goes with me to the washer. She loves filling the soap and she also drops the cloths one by one into the washer.
After folding the cloths, she loves putting her socks/underpants etc away. Thats all for now.

 

I think my husband is right when he says I have spoilt my daughters.

\They know how to use the washing machine. They mixed up clothes once and every thing turned pink...since then I banned them from putting clothes in the machine.They wash their undies and also clothes that run color.They iron their clothes in an emergency ...if it is not done .

They sometimes help with putting them out.

My elder one is fully independent(except financially) She can cook,clean ,drive ,do bank work,clean toilet....but does it only if asked to.

The younger one can make tea and rice.Sometimes chappatis. Once in a while she dusts the house and makes it spotless...but it is once in a blue moon.

 

:biglaugh Good one !
DS(oldest) started doing his since he was 11. He takes care of his comforters sheets etc. I dont track it. They are one complete load anyway . As for the rest ..I have one of those ginormous washing machines and its more practical to do family loads . Absolutely hate folding so one of the boys typically brings it in from the dryer or the line in summer and we fold it together.
I tend to agree that we need to teach and train the kids to be self-sufficient and independent but they dont have to do it every day. Just like cooking. Boys can whip up decent meal when they need to but they dont typically.

 

My 3 and a half year old already helps me with the laundry. She can sort clothes. Pair up daddy's socks and put them in his drawer, puts her clothes away, puts her toys away. She has just started going to a montessori school and I m so excited she will be learning ironing too.:clap I am sure she won't do it for me anyway. My question is when can they start making an Indian cuppa for mommy ? Way to go I guess.

 

My sons started doing their own laundry for the first time when they went to university, they never brought laundry home for me to do for them after that, even now when they come home for holidays they will do their own unless I feel like doing it for them to give them a break then I insist on doing it other then that they are independant since university.

 

My 3.6 old boy offer help to do the laundry. I ask him to put the clothes in the laundry one by one and then ask him to pour the liquid. He is very curious and wants to be a big boy followed by the apprecition. Now I am thinking to make it a routine work so that he will understand that it is his work to do list. we say a proverb in tamil -- if you dont bend in 5 (age) you dont bend in 50 (age) indhil valaiyaathathu inmbhadhil valaiyathu!

 

I made my younger one(16 years old) do laundry today...showing this thread, how little babies are helping out.waitingsmiley
Her reaction after starting the machine:"This younger generation is making us look bad".:shock:

 

Rihana's threads can raise sleeping persons out of vacations

DS10 used to switch on the washing machine since he was 4.
It was his duty every night before going to sleep - check if there was powder, switch on with delay start - the machine would start sometime at 3:00 am and finish when my maid arrives at 5:00 am

He always used to put his uniform and clothes for wash into the washing machine.

Now, he also understands the subtelities - good clothes, school clothes and coloured new clothes and everyday clothes

He has been cleaning his room since he was 7 - I would spread a mat, pull all his clothes out of his cupboards and tell him to segregate, fold and stack it all... He would give me separate piles - one to give away, one to throw, and many segregated ones to keep - I would help put back the piles into the cupboard.

With toys and books also, similar piles - throw, giveaway and keep !

I would just ask him to wipe the cupboards and then keep the ones to keep in designated places...

Now he does them on his own!

We have an extra bedroom where he keeps his story books and I have my own books - he helps me segregate and sort them and organize them by genre - while I dust them and clean them (he has wheezing issues/dust allergies), then we both put them according to genre

He always changes his own bedsheets (whenever I tell him) - he will remove his (single) and mine (double) - and put in the wash
I'll bring the fresh ones, he will be ok with the spreads but have trouble by the 2nd or 3rd pillow cover - and I help there!

If I am sick, he will check all the vessels and if dry - put it back into my cabinets!

Every night I plan for the next day and I ask him to get the vegetables from the fridge - he will wash the vegetables and keep it near the sink, fill water from the RO to jugs and bottles for next morning (and keep one bottle near my bed)

I've never asked him to clean toilets - when I was doing them he was too young. Now the maid does it twice a week ! But he maintains his toilet in his room and if I tell him check your bathroom its smelling - he will pick up the hand shower and shower the whole toilet !

After he eats, if there's anything on the floor or table, he picks it up! He cleans up spills too if he spills something!

He loves cooking and tried his hand at paneer dishes, he can cook rice or at least keep cooker. I'm still scared to let him near knives and gas stove (except to switch it off) so I taught him to keep a cooker on induction cooker and make rice.

He can make a sandwich on his own!

 

Today I keep a separate laundry box for kids and told my younger one to take turns with his brother and do the laundry and its their job to do the laundry. Lets see how it goes.