Today we’re talking about kids chore charts and routine ideas to get the days more regulated. At the time I am writing this, we are in week five of the COVID-19 isolation. It’s been getting better as the family has adapted to the new routine of being home.

The kids are getting homework from their school and working fairly well through it. As a family, we are decluttering which is both a big relief and a source of stress for me. It’s great that we are gathering things we don’t love anymore, but we don’t have anywhere to put them. My plan is to sub-sort their piles and list them for free on Facebook Marketplace or Kijiji. I hope that it will get picked up by people who can use it.

The next phase is to get the kids to help around the house. I want to teach the kids responsibility, take some of the pressure off my husband and me, and also prepare them for when they finally live on their own. They’re definitely watching and taking in what we’re doing. For example, my 14-year-old daughter decided to completely purge her room after I had been decluttering the basement.

Since we’re about to begin this next phase, I decided to round up an assortment of free kid’s chore charts. This is both for my own reference and, hopefully, it will help you. I’m going to include many age ranges so that there should be something for all families to choose from.

Kids Chore Charts

My Name Is Snickerdoodle has a great idea where you can keep the task open and when it’s done, close it! You can use velcro or magnets to keep it closed.

Passion For Savings has a list of age-appropriate chores from ages 2 up to 11 and older. There is also a free chore list printable you can customize.

I’m a big fan of charts with images. It’s a fast glance for any age to know what’s next to be done. Over The Big Moon has created a printable that works great for daily chores.

Have you ever sent your child with vague instructions to “clean your room” and then been disappointed when they are sitting in there playing or the room is worse than when you sent them to work on it?

To be fair, it’s not like we are born with instructions on how mom or dad wants us to maintain our room. I love this idea by Stain Removal 101 where there is a clear list of expectations for what makes a clean bedroom. This way, everyone can get on the same page.

Sometimes it’s fun to let the fates decide what chore you will do. What better than to set up a chore jar for this? Visit Whatever Dee Dee Wants for free colour-coded printable chore sticks.

Building New Routines

Being home all day doesn’t mean cleaning 24/7. We need routines and things to look forward to also! Here are some great daily themes and other ideas for you to build into your new routine of being home with the kids and breaking up the day.

Although originally created for summer, I believe these can be used for any season. Anchored Women wants you to say goodbye to the “I’m Bored” declarations with these simple and fun daily plans for all ages.

As a mom of a tween and teenager and being home for endless hours while trying to help them with school, doing housework, and working (phew!), I’m finding that there is a lot more screen time than I’m comfortable with. This simple list by Thirty Handmade Days will ensure that the kids are getting things done and earning time with their gadgets.  

Fun Activities After Working

All work and no play makes Jack and Jill sad littles. In celebration of our April hat of the month, Spike, I’ve prepared a free activity book filled with monster games and crafts for you to do with the kids. We’ll be changing the activity books each month with books themed after our character hat of the month.

Simply enter your email and I’ll immediately deliver it right to your inbox. Let me know your favourite craft or activity from the book!

I hope this roundup of kids chore charts and ideas for adapting to your new daily routine are helpful to you.

Until next time, may the yarn be with you.

Elizabeth