Yesterday we spent the evening working on garden chores as a family. My twelve year-old was tilling the rows while the other five children got busy with their various sized shovels and filled the garden cart with manure. Once the cart was full, we pulled it down the rows and spread it out evenly so that my 12 year-old could go by again and till it in. Our neighbor’s 14 year-old son made some attempt at helping for about fifteen minutes before he high-tailed it home.

During those first fifteen minutes, I commented about something that I wanted my four year-old to do differently. I’m not even sure now what it was, but I didn’t consider it a big deal–just a slight correction while at the same time I encouraged him about what a great job he was doing. (He’s a hard worker with a child-sized shovel and, oddly enough, prefers standing in a pile of manure in bare feet over boots.) My neighbor’s response to my comment made me smile. Assuming that I was upset about the quality of work, he said,  

“Don’t send a 5 year-old to do a 12 year-old’s job.”

 While I concede that in one sense he has a good point (for there are some things that a younger child certainly shouldn’t attempt in comparison to an older sibling or an adult), I also had to respond with my perspective. I said, “If you let a 5 year-old work with a 12 year-old, and do as much as he is able, he might surprise you! He gains confidence to do a job that might have been considered beyond his ability. He learns how much he can contribute to the family and to the successful completion of a task. And, he’ll probably be able to do the job of a 12 year-old very well by the time he is 8 or 9.”

I don’t believe in challenging our children in a way that will frustrate them; however, I do believe in encouraging them to help alongside of older siblings or adults so that they gain valuable skills and develop a desire to serve others. I’ve seen that as we do this, our younger children are ready to take on more advanced tasks much earlier than their older siblings were. Right now, my four year-old does dishes and really wants to mop the floors, though I limit his work to smaller areas like the bathroom. (He’s still not really good with the pre-mop sweeping.)

How do introduce your younger children to household work, and what’s your general feeling about letting them “have at it” even if they’re guaranteed not to do a perfect job?