Make a Chore Schedule
With work, school, social activities, sports, meetings and other time requirements, some families struggle to find the time to get things done around the house. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the average American spends only one hour per day on household chores, while average Americans devote nearly nine hours each day to work. Household responsibilities can be easier to cope with if you divide them among the members of the household and create a schedule that allows you to get everything done without sacrificing time or performance from the rest of your life.
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Instructions
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Create a list of chores that need to be done around your home. At this point, the order does not matter. Carry this list around with you and write down chores as you come across them during the week.
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Organize your chores by scheduled day and frequency. For instance, if the garbage pickup is Thursday, the trash needs to go out before Thursday. Similarly, some chores (dishes, walking the dog) must be done each day, while others (cleaning the bathroom, vacuuming) may be weekly chores. Separate these chores accordingly.
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Write any age limitations next to each chore so that you know who can handle these chores. You may not want your five-year-old walking the dog around the neighborhood or your eight-year-old dusting your antique china. Decide which chores are appropriate for the ages of the members of your household.
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Make a list of each family member's daily obligations. Include school and work, as well as extracurricular activities like sports or extra classes. This will help you create a time frame for each family member to do his or her chores.
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Discuss with your family which chores each person would like to do or would not like to do. If your spouse hates washing the the dishes but enjoys mowing the lawn (or vice versa), try to accommodate these preferences to make chores as pleasant as possible.
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Combine chores, age limitations, schedule requirements and chore preferences to form a weekly calendar of chores. You can write the chores on your regular calendar or create an individual chore chart that features each person's name, each day of the week and when each chore must be done.
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Post the chore schedule in a common area of the home so that everyone can check the schedule. Address any potential concerns or conflicts that arise, and make any adjustments as necessary week by week.
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Tips & Warnings
Young children will often respond best to positive reinforcement for doing their chores. Consider implementing an allowance or reward system when children successfully complete their chores.
You may need to change the schedule each week to allow for sporting events, social gatherings or other conflicts. The schedule is flexible but provides some form of stability to the household responsibilities.
References
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