Responsibilities For a Six Year Old + Printable Chart

Thanks to Dyson for giving me a vacuum in exchange for my honest review. All opinions and content are entirely my own.

I kind of hate the word “chore”. I don’t even know why. Maybe it’s some weird childhood issue, but for some reason, that word seems like a negative thing or a burden. I prefer the word “responsibility”, so, I choose to call the list of things I expect Grayson to do every day his “responsibility list” instead of “chore list”.

It’s tough at this age. As a mom, I know he should be helping out more and is capable of larger tasks, but it’s always a guessing game for me. So, of course I peruse the internet to see what other moms are doing. Then, I consider my own child, his strengths, his personality type, and try to come up with what I think he can be responsible for.

Grayson is a kid that thrives on a reward based system and does poorly with consequence based discipline. He is better behaved and more motivated when he is working to see a positive outcome or a reward. Personally, I like a mix of both, but as adults we all work toward “rewards”, so it makes sense to incorporate that train of thought with our kids.

Here is a glimpse of what Grayson’s Weekday Responsibilities look like:

Morning:

Brush Teeth | Get Dressed | Eat Breakfast

Afternoon:

Get folder out of bookbag for Mom to look at | Do Homework | Get the mail | Make sure room is tidy

Evening:

Take shower | Brush teeth | Eat Dinner | Read 20 minutes

On the weekends, we try to team up as a family to get the house cleaned. Grayson is able to do any of these tasks:

• Take dirty laundry to the laundry room
• Empty wastebaskets into trashcan in kitchen
• Dust
• Match socks
• Put away his laundry
• Vacuum

His VERY favorite thing to do is vacuum. I love this, because now that Charlie is crawling all over the floor, we are vacuuming once a day. Before, I had a big regular vacuum with a long cord (you know the one), and Grayson always wanted to vacuum. I hesitated to let him because the vacuum was as big as him and he didn’t have the strength or coordination to really make it work. Then, I got a Dyson V6 Absolute. It’s a totally cordless vacuum. It literally weighs five pounds and there are no cords. You charge it up, and you are ready to go. With the roller ball type navigation, it’s extremely easy to “drive”, even for a six year old. I love that the handle has a button that releases the canister into the trash so that you don’t get dirty.

I have admitted on social media before that I have a strange obsession with vacuuming. I really like it. Like, a lot. I get some kind of satisfaction from mindlessly vacuuming. I never understood why certain vacuums were more expensive than others. Like, isn’t a vacuum a vacuum?! NO. The answer is no.

I vacuumed with my other vacuum the day before I got the Dyson V6 Absolute. When I used the Dyson, the canister was full after vacuuming HALF of my living room. That’s how much my old vacuum wasn’t picking up. Isn’t that gross? AND I have a baby all over the floor. This thing is amazing and now I totally understand that you get what you pay for (like a lot of things in life).

The handle/canister portion is where the motor is, so when that disconnects, you can hook up any of the other cool attachments.

This makes it EVEN EASIER for Grayson to use it. It becomes a handheld vacuum for the stairs, couches, whatever. He absolutely loves it. The Dyson V6 Absolute makes me feel like my house is ACTUALLY #cleaneverywhere! Ps- you can save $120 with the sale they have going on right now!

I made a printable “Responsibilities” chart for you! Just right click the image to save it and print it.

Tell me, how old are your kids and what responsibilities do they have? I am dying to know what everyone else does!