In this article I am sharing with you 8 easy chores that my toddler can do with me, so that I can get things done, but not miss out on that bonding time.
Here’s a common situation in our household: I’ve got work to do, chores to complete, and a to-do list a mile long. Sometimes I just don’t have time to play with my kids.
But I still want to bond with them! I don’t want to miss out on quality time. And I often find that, when I am busy with something, my 2-year-old wants to get in on that action, too.
Copycats
The thing is, kids love copying what we do. Have you noticed that they love “playing” the ordinary, day-to-day activities? My son loves cooking up a good old “blockie soup”. Or “mowing the lawn” with his trolley. Or going to the supermarket to “shop for groceries”. And he loves it!! These days we can buy toy kitchenettes, irons, houses, drills, tool kits and cooking sets which enable our kids to play-act what adults do as part of the day-to-day.
Getting toddlers involved with chores isn’t easy
Yes, it involving your toddlers will make the chore take longer. And things will definitely get messier before they get cleaner. Sure, things may break.
But the more you do it, the more capable your toddler will become. They will have a lot of fun doing it, and it is great a way for you to bond with your child in a practical and productive way. You will get a warm fuzzy feeling when they march importantly around the house with the air of a home-making connoisseur.
But there are definitely some chores you can’t do with your toddler. Mowing the lawns, for example. This article is about the chores that are safe for toddlers and are things they are actually capable of. Here’s a list of 8 chores I can easily do with my toddler that we (now) both enjoy.
8 Easy Toddler-Friendly Chores
1. The Dishes
This is an amazing activity for toddlers. It teaches them how to categorise and sort different things. My toddler LOVES stacking the dishwasher – it is like a game of Tetris!
Pushing the button to turn the dishwasher on is also a great source of excitement. Then, at the end, he loves putting the dishes back into the cupboards where they belong. He knows where everything goes and is very careful to put it in it’s correct place. He loves that he has mastered it and is doing it right.
It definitely takes a lot longer than if I did it myself, but I love that he is being equipped and becoming capable. I love seeing his desire to be helpful, too.
2. Hang out the washing
Hanging out the washing is a chore my toddler LOVES helping with. He either hands me the clothes or the pegs.
I try to test his knowledge, by asking him to try and find all the socks, or all the blue things. He loves rifling through, trying to hunt them out, and match them up.
Hanging out the washing is such a great opportunity for toddlers to learn how to organise, and clean. Plus, it’s like a game for them! Win, win, win.
3. Workout
Working out with my toddler is actually very fun and interactive. Don’t wait for your kid to go to sleep before you do it – they will love joining you! My toddler loves chasing me, running with me, and trying to do star jumps and squats.
Put an easy workout on that you can do together. It’s so cute watching them try to do the moves, and it establishes healthy habits in them!
4. Gardening
When we are out in the garden, you can betcha our toddler is out there with his little spade and bucket, making a mess, but having an utterly glorious time.
Kids love fussing around in the garden, putting things into buckets, and pulling out weeds. I hand my toddler a weed and he loves to run and put it in the weed bucket. There are so many things for him to learn and observe in the garden – how a small seedling becomes a big plant with vegetables. Or, how a young tree produces leaves and blossoms and then fruits.
The garden is such a magical, living, always-changing thing. There is always something new and different going on that will keep your toddler stimulated. Don’t let a fear of mess or dirt hold you back like it did to me – your toddler will grow so much if they are let to dig a bit in the garden.
5. Baking
My toddler LOVES baking with me, but, oh, how it tests me!! You definitely have to be in the right frame of mind for it, but when you are, they definitely have a good time.
It is a messy chore, and I like a serene kitchen, so I do not do this as often as I should.
But, my son loves mixing and putting the ingredients into the bowl and licking it afterwards. He is fascinated to see the basic ingredients be ground and churned and mixed into a dough, and then to see the raw dough transformed into the baked good.
That’s a chemistry and math’s lesson right there!
6. Grocery Shopping
My toddler is quite happy to play “grocery shopping” with his little walker trolley and his blocks. We play it quite often! So, when he gets a chance to go to the actual grocery shop (we don’t do it often as we do our grocery shop online), he feels like he is in a wonderland of sorts.
All those brightly coloured tins and packages that make different sounds when you shake them, or feel different when you touch them. And the smells! It is an amazing sensory experience.
It is also a great exercise in helping: they love putting things in the trolley or on the counter and swiping the card, and helping to pack it away when you get home.
7. Pack things away
A rule we have in our house is that we will only have one or two “toys” out at a particular time. By toy, I mean a box of blocks or a basket of trains. This rule is in place to make sure the house never gets dauntingly messy and to teach my child the “clean as you go” concept.
Here’s a tip – get a nice box or basket to store all the little things. This will make packing away a simple task that your child can actually do by themselves.
My toddler actually enjoys packing his toys away. He loves being capable, and when it has a designated place, it makes it an easy exercise for him to do.
8. Go to church
This is definitely not a chore, but Church is a great thing to do on a regular basis with the family. It is a fun way to spend a Sunday Morning, and there is something at Church for all ages (especially toddlers).
You do not need to be a Christian to go to church! Go and enjoy some music, good life teaching and awesome childcare. There is usually a program for the toddlers, a quiet little room for nursing mums, and then the auditorium room for adults who just want to relax and absorb good teaching.
Kids LOVE church, so it is a great way to keep them occupied for a long morning. Plus, they are usually so tired after the service, that they will have a good long nap in the afternoon (not that that is the point…haha).
Final Tip
That’s a wrap on my 8 things to do to bond with your kid.
Here’s a tip to avoid getting frustrated when these activities take longer or the house ends up getting messier: be determined to enjoy it. Glory in the fact that your child is learning, and having fun at the same time. Turn a blind eye to the mess and the slowness of it all, and focus on bonding with your child.
It is so rewarding when you spend the time taking your toddler with you through all these things, instead of just doing it really quickly yourself. Think that you are setting them up to be independent and capable, and they can do it for you, later!
The bible says: “Teach a child in the way he should go, and even when he is old, he will not turn from it”. By training your toddler to do these chores, it becomes ingrained in them TO do them.
What are some easy chores you do with your children?
Excellent tips Stephanie!
Even as an adult it’s such a thrill to see how your garden grows.
And clean as you go is a very good motto for life!
Thanks Pa!! It is very thrilling 🙂